Lancaster Demands Buffalo Apologize For Street Takeover Comments

As we find out more information about the plethora of violence that occurred in Buffalo and other places around Western New York during the 4th of July weekend, one comment that was made during a more than 30-minute press conference given by the Buffalo Police Department on Monday, July 6, 2026, has created quite the stir in one Buffalo suburb.

During the press conference at Buffalo Police Headquarters, Buffalo Police Commissioner Erika Shields asked the Chief of the city's E-District police house to add some context to what they learned.

People who attended this event were from other parts of Erie County... It wasn't just the underserved. They were from areas of Lancaster and they were also from families potentially that would not be considered in the underserved grouping.
-Todd McAlister, Police Chief of BPD E-District

Once the that press conference was wrapped up, Town of Lancaster Supervisor Bob Leary has been in a tizzy claiming that Buffalo is blaming the violence that occurred on East Delavan street on Lancaster.

I was shocked and appalled to hear the generalization of them saying that Lancaster was somehow responsible for the violence that was occurring in the city of Buffalo... And talking about the underserved kids in Buffalo, and kind of intimating that the kids from Lancaster were privileged, sounds more like some type of political type of statement.
-Robert Leary, Supervisor, Town of Lancaster, New York

Those comments have led Supervisor Leary to demand a public apology from the City of Buffalo, according to WGRZ-TV's reporting.

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While it seems that the comments from McAlister were meant to provide context using a bit of nuance, including the fact that the alleged street takeover that happened on Stevens and East Delavan was attended by teens from all over Western New York, including other parts of Buffalo and Erie County, the backlash coming from Lancaster seems overblown. This may be especially true, since Buffalo officials didn't specify whether they were referring to the Town of Lancaster or the Village of Lancaster in their comments.

Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan, who spoke with the media on Tuesday, July 7th, noted that as officers conducted license plate checks during their intelligence work, they found cars from all over Western New York around East Delavan Ave during the street takeover, including some from Lancaster.

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We'll need to wait and see if Buffalo issues an apology to Lancaster or not. If that happens, we'll keep you updated.