BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A high-ranking official in the Erie County Sheriff’s Office is facing allegations of being involved in a hit-and-run crash while in an impaired condition, according to a lawsuit filed last year.
Lawsuit Details
Daniel "DJ" Granville, the Chief of Narcotics and Intelligence for the Erie County Sheriff’s Office, is accused of negligently, recklessly, and carelessly driving his county-owned vehicle before losing control and crashing into several parked cars. The lawsuit states that the incident occurred last April at the intersection of Jersey Street and Prospect Avenue on Buffalo’s West Side.
911 recordings from that night reveal multiple callers reporting a hit-and-run.
"Prospect hit-and-run… another call states that multiple vehicles that were parked were also struck," dispatch audio said.
The owner of a damaged Jeep claims in the lawsuit that Granville "was in an impaired condition" at the time of the crash.
Taxpayer Costs & Lack of Transparency
According to the Investigative Post, the first to report this, several claims related to the crash have cost Erie County taxpayers nearly $60,000 to settle.
Despite this, Granville remains in his position, and there has been no indication of disciplinary action.
I asked Granville to comment on the allegations during Tuesday's Erie County Sheriff’s Office news conference, but he declined.
I also asked Sheriff John Garcia about this.
“This is costing taxpayers over $60,000 in reference to this hit-and-run accident. I mean, where is the transparency here when it comes to addressing this and at least giving the public some answers?” I asked.
“The Buffalo Police Department is doing an internal affairs investigation. Until that concludes, to me, it’s just a car accident—I haven’t heard otherwise,” Garcia responded.
When asked whether the sheriff’s office was conducting its own investigation, Garcia simply said, “The short answer is no.”
Possible Conflict of Interest?
Records show that the Buffalo Police Department accident report from that night was signed off by Buffalo Police Lieutenant Lucia Esquilin — who, according to IP, is Granville’s sister-in-law.
Buffalo's Acting Mayor Chris Scanlon was asked if that presented a conflict of interest.
“You know, so this whole incident—it’s just something that’s really recently come to light," he said.
Scanlon added that because the incident happened before he took office, and because it involves an internal affairs investigation, he cannot comment further.
“Once this investigation plays out, we’ll see what goes on with it, and we’ll go from there," he said.
7 News did submit a Freedom of Information Request for the police report from that night. We are awaiting a response.
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