Democratic chair, son indicted on forgery charges related to Mount Kisco mayoral race
The chairman of the Mount Kisco Democratic party and his son have been indicted on charges they forged signatures on nominating petitions for a mayoral candidate.
William and Carmelo Serratore pleaded not guilty Wednesday at their arraignment before acting state Supreme Court Justice Robert Neary to charges that some of the signatures they collected for Thomas Luzio, a former Westchester County prosecutor, were forged. The petitions were collected between early April and early May and filed with the Westchester Board of Elections to help Luzio get on the Democratic primary ballot in late June.
The elder Serratore is also the director of the Yonkers Office of Sustainability.
Several of the voters who had purportedly signed the petitions submitted affidavits claiming the signatures were forgeries, prompting the investigation in the months leading up to the June primary. Luzio lost by fewer than 70 votes to Deputy Mayor Lisa Abzun, who faces former Mayor J. Michael Cindrich in the November election.
The case was investigated and presented to a grand jury by the Rockland District Attorney's Office, which took on the role of special prosecutor after Westchester District Attorney Mimi Rocah recused herself in the spring to avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest. Luzio had left the DA's Office before Rocah's 2020 election but had served as an advisor to her campaign and was part of her transition team.
The Serratores are each charged with second-degree forgery and second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, both felonies punishable by up to seven years in state prison. William Serratore is also charged with first-degree offering a false instrument for filing, a felony with a maximum prison sentence of four years.
Luzio was never accused of any wrongdoing and said Thursday that the investigation, which he cooperated in, vindicated him regarding suggestions that were made on social media and press reports that he should have been held responsible for any actions by signature collectors. He said he testified before the grand jury in the case.
Luzio feels strongly that the investigation helped decide the campaign.
"I feel like I was collateral damage and my campaign was collateral damage," he said.
He said that as a first-time candidate he had relied on William Serratore's offer to coordinate his petition drive to get on the ballot.
"If it was done," he said of the alleged forgeries, "I had no reason to suspect anything untoward would happen in such a benign thing as collecting signatures."
After Abzun's lawyer brought the issue to Westchester prosecutors in late April, Serratore suggested in a text to The Journal News/lohud that it was sour grapes and "political partisan nonsense" after the committee endorsed Luzio. He has not responded to questions since then and could not be reached Wednesday afternoon. It was not immediately clear who is representing him and his son.
In 2020, Serratore vied for the chairmanship of the Westchester Democratic party but was defeated by Greenburgh chairwoman Suzanne Berger in a vote of party district leaders.
The indictment has no immediate impact on Serratore’s job in Yonkers, which he has held for over two years.
“We are aware of the charges brought against Bill,” said city spokeswoman Christina Gilmartin. “While the charges are in no relation to his work with the City of Yonkers or elections in our city, we will follow the case closely and determine whether disciplinary actions are warranted pending its outcome."
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Mount Kisco NY Democratic chair Serratore, son face forgery charges
