Monroe County District Attorney Sandra Doorley is under investigation after an incident involving a heated confrontation with a police officer who had stopped her for speeding. Doorley called the officer an “a–hole” and demanded to be left alone. The bodycam video of the incident showed Doorley not cooperating with the officer’s demands and becoming agitated throughout the encounter. Doorley later apologized, admitting that her actions were wrong and taking full responsibility for them. Governor Kathy Hochul referred the incident to the State Commission on Prosecutorial Conduct.
In the bodycam video, the confrontation began when the officer, identified as Cameron Crisafulli, approached Doorley’s garage after she had parked there. He questioned why she didn’t pull over when he had his lights and sirens on, and Doorley admitted to speeding. She claimed she did not think he was trying to pull her over because there were other cars on the road. Throughout the video, Doorley did not cooperate with the officer’s instructions, even trying to retreat into her home at one point. She repeatedly mentioned that she was the District Attorney of Monroe County and demanded to be left alone.
Despite the officer’s efforts to maintain control of the situation, Doorley continued to exhibit hostile behavior towards him. She mentioned that she had been dealing with multiple murders in the city and claimed that she did not care about the speeding violation. Eventually, a supervisor was called to the scene, and Crisafulli ended up writing her a ticket for speeding. Doorley apologized and acknowledged that the encounter did not go well. She later issued a public apology, expressing remorse for her actions and acknowledging that she was in the wrong.
Governor Hochul commented on the incident, stating that Doorley’s behavior was unacceptable and undermined her credibility as a District Attorney. Doorley issued a formal apology video in which she admitted that she failed to uphold the values she had maintained throughout her 33-year career. She explained that she had been dealing with a stressful day, including three homicides, and a medical concern regarding her husband. Doorley accepted her mistake, pleaded guilty to the speeding ticket, and pledged to undergo ethics training to ensure that such behavior does not happen again.
Doorley acknowledged that her actions were inappropriate and that she would be taking steps to rectify the situation. She stated that if one of her assistant district attorneys had acted in the same manner, she would have disciplined them. Doorley accepted full responsibility for her behavior and expressed her commitment to making amends. She apologized to the officer involved and the public, asking for forgiveness. Doorley also announced that she would refer the incident to another district attorney’s office for review and self-report the case to the grievance committee. She vowed to undergo ethics training to remind herself of the importance of professionalism in her role as a District Attorney.
