BREAKING NEWS: Mayor of New Rochelle Referred to Westchester District Attorney for Public Corruption
Ethics Board finds Noam Bramson guilty on 2 of 3 charges.
NEW ROCHELLE, NY (June 17, 2022) -- After weeks of delay, the pace of the public corruption investigation into New Rochelle Mayor Noam Bramson has escalated quickly.
The Ethics Board filed its report last night after a 12-week investigation into three charges of public corruption.
The report concluded Mayor Noam Bramson did pressure City Manager Charles B. Strome to appoint him to a $210,000 a year job as Development Commissioner, a job for which he was not qualified for under the City Charter. He did canvass Council members to rescind Strome’s appointment of Kathleen Gill as Deputy City Manager. On the third charge, the report concluded Bramson did not violate the charter in seeking to appoint an unqualified person, Alisa Kesten, his former campaign manager, to the position of City Manager.
Not mentioned in the report is an analysis and conclusion regarding the allegations against other Council members, especially Sara Kaye and Yadira Ramos-Herbert, for agreeing to vote to remove Strome if he did not rescind the Gill appointment.
There remains the bigger question of Bramson using his elected office to obtain something of value — the $210,000 a year Development Commissioner job. That is a question that will now be taken up by the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office.
For the full details, read the three linked articles below.
RELATED:
GUILTY: New Rochelle Ethics Board Finds Mayor Noam Bramson Violated the City Charter, a Misdemeanor - a summary of the findings in the report.
New Rochelle Ethics Board Report on Mayor Noam Bramson ($) - the full report.
Ethics Board Report on New Rochelle Mayor Noam Bramson is Complete - the history of the case.
Outstanding investigative reporting and citizen advocacy by Mr. Cox.
NY Governor Hocul needs to use the powers of her office to temporarily remove Noam Bramson from office and allow day-to-day operations at New Rochelle City Hall to proceed unfettered as the criminal investigation unfolds. The City Manager, City Council members, and others at City Hall who interact with Noam on a daily basis cannot properly discharge their duties under these circumstances.
New Rochelle is turned upside down.