Embattled Democratic mayor of Rochester indicted on weapons, child endangerment charges



Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren and her husband, Timothy Granison, have been indicted on new charges related to firearms and child endangerment. The new charges stem from a police raid at their home in May, when Granison was arrested on three charges related to drugs and firearms.

The Monroe County District Attorney's Office announced that Warren and Granison were each hit with charges of criminal possession of a firearm, a Class E felony; two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor; and two counts of failure to secure firearms, a misdemeanor.

The home was searched by New York state police on May 19 in relation to Granison's suspected criminal activity. Police found a rifle and pistol inside the home, where the couple's 10-year-old daughter was left alone, according to District Attorney Sandra Doorley.

Warren's husband was charged with being part of a cocaine distribution ring in Rochester. Granison is accused in a federal complaint of receiving bulk quantities of cocaine from a co-defendant and then distributing it to other alleged traffickers, according to the Associated Press. Warren is not implicated in the alleged drug trafficking ring.

Granison, 42, pleaded not guilty to drug and weapons charges last month. Regarding the new charges, Granison's attorney, John DeMarco, said, "We will enter a plea of not guilty."

"The district attorney's office, hopefully, will provide us all of the investigatory reports, search warrants, photographs, everything that the police put together for their office to present the case and will evaluate what our strategy at that time," DeMarco said.

Warren previously denied knowledge about her husband's alleged criminal activities, and said she and Granison had been separated and estranged for years despite living in the same home in Woodman Park.

Warren and her husband are to be arraigned before a Cayuga County judge in Monroe County.

Coincidentally, Warren announced a gun buy-back program for the city of Rochester in May.

"Getting guns off our streets must be our priority," Warren said in a statement. "We must continue working together with our citizens to take these guns off our streets so our residents can feel safe in their neighborhoods and live the lives they deserve."

Warren, who is a Democrat, faces her own legal issues after she was indicted on two felony campaign finance charges in October. The grand jury indictment relates to Warren's 2017 mayoral re-election campaign. One felony charge is for first-degree scheme to defraud. The other felony charge is an election law offense for illegally coordinating activities and expenditures. Warren admits to errors in reporting campaign contributions, but claims they were honest mistakes.

Warren was defeated last month by Malik Evans in the Democratic primary for Rochester mayor. Warren's second mayoral term is set to expire at the end of this year.

Democrat Mayor Lovely Warren, Charged For Alleged Campaign Finance Fraud, Loses Primary

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Rochester mayor's husband arrested on felony drug and weapon charges after police search



The mayor of Rochester, New York, is questioning the timing of authorities arresting her husband on felony drug and weapon charges, after he was arrested as part of an ongoing drug investigation this week.

What are the details?

Mayor Lovely Warren's (D) husband, Timothy Granison, emerged as a suspect three months ago in an investigation being conducted by Rochester police and the area's narcotics team, which was launched seven months ago.

Authorities said that once Granison became a target, the part of the probe involving Granison was taken over by State Police "to preserve the integrity of the investigation for obvious reasons," the Democrat & Chronicle reported.

On Wednesday afternoon, State Police pulled Granison over and found cocaine inside his vehicle, and in a following search of the home he shares with Warren, law enforcement discovered an unregistered handgun. A rifle was also seized, but it is unclear if that firearm is illegal.

Bearing Arms noted that just last week, Warren announced a gun buy-back program for the city of Rochester.

"Getting guns off our streets must be our priority," she said in a statement. "We must continue working together with our citizens to take these guns off our streets so our residents can feel safe in their neighborhoods and live the lives they deserve."

Warren's husband was one of seven people charged in the investigation that involved authorities finding more than two kilos of powder and crack cocaine, three firearms and $100,000 cash, according to Monroe County District Attorney Sandra Doorley (R).

Granison "previously served five years probation for a 1997 jewelry store robbery," according to The Daily Caller. He was charged with three felonies in connection with Wednesday's searches: two drug possession charges, and one weapons charge.

What did the mayor say?

The mayor held a news conference Thursday wherein she addressed the charges against her husband, as well as a separate ongoing investigation into her allegedly violating election laws.

Warren, who has served as mayor of Rochester since 2014, distanced herself from her husband, saying that she and Granison had signed a separation agreement years ago but the two had decided to stay together to co-parent their daughter.

The mayor also suggested she was being targeted at this time because it is three weeks before early voting starts in the mayoral election, and after she "announced we were moving forward with reparations and universal basic income."

She declared during the presser, "Some people would do anything to try and break me."

Democratic mayor of Rochester indicted on felony campaign finance charges



Democratic Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren has been indicted on two felony campaign finance charges, Monroe County District Attorney Sandra Doorley announced on Friday. The grand jury indictment stems from Warren's 2017 mayoral re-election campaign.

One felony charge is for first-degree scheme to defraud. The other charge is an election law offense for illegally coordinating activities and expenditures. Under New York's rule, political action committees and committees are forbidden from coordinating.

The investigation by the New York State Board of Elections claims that the Warren for a Stronger Rochester PAC transferred $30,000 from the group to Warren's committee, Friends of Lovely Warren, according to 2017 expenditure reports obtained by Rochester First.

Warren has firmly denied any wrongdoing, and called the investigation a "political witch hunt." She claims the funds were errantly deposited in the PAC account.

Warren's attorney, Joseph Damelio, said the length of time between the accusations and the investigation that led to the indictments shows the flimsiness of the criminal case.

If convicted of the Class E felony charges, Warren would be removed from office under state law. The maximum sentence would range from 16 months to four years in prison.

"While Warren would be unlikely to be incarcerated, her pension could be forfeited if the matter is determined to be a crime related to public office, and she also could lose her law license," USA Today reported.

Warren has not been arrested but will be processed, according to Doorley.

"This could be a long process and we anticipate that there could be challenges along the way so I don't think this will be anything resolved quickly," Doorley said during a news briefing.

Warren's campaign treasurer, Albert Jones Jr., and the treasurer of her political action committee, Rosalind Brooks-Harris, have also been indicted in the case. Brooks-Harris is also Rochester's finance director.

Warren and her two campaign associates will be arraigned at 4 p.m. Monday, Oct. 5, in front of Cayuga County Judge Thomas Leone in Monroe County.

The Rochester mayor has been scrutinized over her handling of the death of Daniel Prude, who died while in the custody of Rochester police. The 41-year-old Prude died after police put a spit hood on his head during his arrest in March. He was completely nude during his arrest. The death sparked protests and riots in the city, where agitators targeted outside diners and residential homes.

In September, the entire Rochester Police Department command staff resigned.