An upstate New York judge who was caught-on-video shoving a cop during a wild shirtless brawl with his neighbors over a parking spot could get off with just a slap on the wrist.
Mark Grisanti, 59, was formally reprimanded by the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct [SCJC] for the cuss-laden June 2020 melee that ended with him cuffed.
The judicial watchdog group explained that while SCJC Administrator Robert Tembeckjian recommended Grisanti be kicked off the bench, and four members voted for his ouster, six other panelists opted for the lighter censuring, or public admonishment.
“I hope Judge Grisanti appreciates how close he came to being removed, and that his future conduct will exemplify the integrity and dignity required of his high office,” Tembeckjian said in a statement Tuesday.
Grisanti, a Court of Claims judge and acting Erie County Supreme Court Justice, was elected to office in 2015 and while his term expired in July 2023 he’s been continuing to serve in a “holdover” capacity, the SCJC said.
— was formally reprimanded by the for a curse-laden physical fight with his neighbors and with cops in Buffalo, NY on .
He earned $210,900 in 2023, according to SeeThroughNY.
The June 22, 2020 altercation began because Grisanti believed his neighbors Joseph, 69, and Gina Mele, 57, were encroaching on his driveway in Buffalo, according to the SCJC determination from April 22, made public Tuesday,
The allegedly troublesome neighbors again parked two cars “on opposite sides” of Grisanti’s driveway when he got home the night of the fight, the filing says.
The judge called 911 before he and wife Maria Grisanti confronted the Meles with Grisanti yelling “Every f–king Thursday,” “I’ll f–king flatten your face again” and other profanities, the papers claim.
During the melee, the Meles lobbed swears back at the Grisantis and the quadruple tussled before cops arrived, the documents allege.
Buffalo police officers tried to break up the bitter neighbors, handcuffing a slight five-foot-tall, 100-pound Maria and eventually bringing her to the ground while she resisted, the determination says.
This prompted Grisanti to shove the arresting officer, before another cop held him while he yelled “you better get off my f–king wife” and also threatening they’d “be sorry” because his son and daughter are cops, the filing claims.
Grisanti, who was also cuffed, eventually apologized for pushing the cop before he was taken away. Charges were never brought against any of the four neighbors.
The judge had lost family members around the time of the incident, which contributed to the meltdown, the filing claims.
He enrolled himself the next month in counseling provided by the courts, which he remained in until February 2021.
The SCJC also found Grisanti should be admonished for presiding over eight cases in which an attorney who the judge had sold his law firm to was involved in.
Grisanti continued to receive compensation from the lawyer — who bought the practice for $50,0000 — through June 2019 but failed to report their ties and did not disclose the pay in 2015, the SCJC alleged.
The judge has 30 days to request a review of the SCJC’s determination from the New York Court of Appeals, otherwise, the censure will be finalized.
Neighbor Gina Mele told The Post by phone Tuesday that she was “puzzled” that the SCJC was letting Grisanti — who she said still lives across the street from her — off so easily.
“I’m shocked that he was only censured,” she said. “I have lost confidence in our judicial system altogether. Me and my husband were the victims in this situation.”
Mele claimed that she and her husband didn’t encroach on Grisanti’s property, but would merely park on the public street in front of the judge’s house and never understood why he would get so angry.
She said she felt it was unfair that charges were never brought against the Gristanti’s and felt a cover-up had taken place.
As for her husband, Mele said, “he always says that our rights were violated and it boils down to who you are and who you know.”
Grisanti’s lawyers Terrence Connors and Vincent Doyle said in a statement that the judge’s conduct that day didn’t warrant his removal.
“The Judicial Conduct Commission examined every inch of Justice Grisanti’s career,” the statement said. “The multiple-day hearing featured testimony from lawyers, court personnel, and other judges that Justice Grisanti is an exemplary judge who is diligent, hardworking and courteous.”
“Today’s decision concludes that, on balance, Justice Grisanti’s conduct during a two-hour period of one day, compared to his excellent record as a judge, does not warrant removal from the bench,” the lawyers concluded.
