District Attorney Assigned As Special Prosecutor In Minority Leader's DWI Case

ROCHESTER, NY (WSKG) - A special prosecutor has been appointed to handle the drunken driving case of Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb.

On Thursday, officials said that Yates County District Attorney Todd Casella has been named to handle that misdemeanor case of DWI.

On Wednesday, Ontario County Sheriff Kevin Henderson said that Ontario County District Attorney Jim Ritts would ask that a special prosecutor be appointed to avoid any perception of favoritism.

Kolb was charged on New Year’s Eve when his state-owned SUV got stuck in a ditch near his home in the town of Victor. The sheriff had said there was minor damage to the vehicle and no one was injured. Kolb also faces a charge of making an unsafe turn.

WXXI News contacted several area Republican Assembly members on Thursday, and so far the only one who has responded is Assemblyman Peter Lawrence of the 134th District, which includes towns in western Monroe County.

Lawrence, who is a former U.S. Marshal and State Police official, said in a written statement that he “was surprised and disappointed” to learn of Kolb’s arrest, saying that as a former member of law enforcement, he found it particularly troubling.

But Lawrence also said that since the incident involves state government property, it could be brought to the Assembly’s Committee on Ethics and Guidance, of which is he a member, so it would not be appropriate for him to comment further.

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Kolb has not commented beyond the initial statement he issued on Wednesday in which he called the arrest “a terrible lapse in judgment,” and said that he made the wrong decision and that it is one that he deeply regrets.