Rochester, NY – Former Greece Police Chief Merritt Rahn is now a convicted felon after a contentious trial that lasted more than four weeks.
In a verdict read Thursday afternoon, Rahn was found guilty on seven of nine charges against him, including four felonies.
Rahn had nothing to say when he walked out of the courtroom. "No comment, no comment," he told reporters. "I've been advised by my attorney not to make a comment."
Defense Attorney Speaks
His attorney John Parrinello spoke for him. Parrinello said he anticipated a split verdict, and was surprised at the "guilty" finding on several of the charges.
"With respect to Gary Pignato, I still maintain that was an Auberger hire," he said. "I don't know how they could have accepted the testimony of Trowbridge as justifying a guilty verdict."
Assistant District Attorney Sandra Doorley was pleased with the outcome. "The jury found he committed criminal acts, and now he will be held responsible," she said. "No one is above the law."
The Convictions
Six of the convictions stem from the 2008 hit-and-run case of former officer Nick Joseph; Rahn was found guilty of tampering with public records, hindering a prosecution, falsifying business records, falsely reporting an incident, and two counts of official misconduct in an attempt to cover up the incident. He was also found guilty of offering a false instrument for filing in the case of former officer Gary Pignato’s background check.
Rahn was found not guilty of two charges of filing a false instrument. Both of those charges were related to the theft of Rahn’s service weapon several years ago.
According to the DA's office, Rahn faces from probation to 6-2/3 to 11 years in prison.
The jury deliberated all day Thursday after being sequestered overnight. Jurors requested several readings of law definitions and testimony, including a reading of the laws on official misconduct, tampering, and hindering prosecution, as well as testimony about the Nick Joseph crash.
Just before the jury began deliberating Wednesday afternoon, the number of charges against Rahn was reduced by three, but that still left nine charges to be considered, five of which are felonies.
Rahn, 61, was police chief for the town of Greece from 1993 until last year, when he resigned after being indicted.
Throughout the trial, defense attorney John Parrinello sparred with witnesses and Judge Francis Affronti, even earning a contempt of court charge and a $500 fine from the judge.
Parrinello had promised to put Greece Town Supervisor John Auberger on trial, attempting to ask questions about his recent close election and the $600,000 audit of the Greece Police Department paid for by taxpayers. He accused the prosecution of engaging in a political witch hunt.
Leading up to the Trial
The prosecution’s case against Rahn focused on charges of wrongdoing while leading the force, including being accused of falsifying an officer’s background check, lying about the theft of his service gun, and trying to impede the investigation of a crash involving an off-duty Greece police officer.
In the days after a 2008 hit and run crash involving Nick Joseph, prosecutors said Rahn misled the district attorney's office into thinking it was not a serious crash. Even though other officers brought concerns about Joseph's alcohol and cocaine use, Rahn told them the D.A.'s office there was no basis for criminal charges.
Joseph was sentenced to 3+ to 7 years in prison after being found guilty of seven charges last year, including leaving the scene of an accident, driving while impaired by cocaine, and possession of cocaine, all related to a hit-and-run accident on Route I-390 that caused a woman to deliver her baby 14 weeks early.
Rahn was also accused of falsifying a background check of former officer Gary Pignato. Pignato, who was hired based on that check, is now in prison, convicted of using his badge to coerce a woman into sex.
Among the witnesses was Rochester Mayor and former city police chief Robert Duffy, who testified that he never recommended anyone else hire Pignato.
The Greece Police Sergeant who was assigned to create that background check, Robert Trowbridge, testified that he rushed the document and added false information at the request of Chief Rahn.
Rahn will be sentenced on July 6 at 9:30 a.m. He was released on his own recognizance.
