Mar 13
2025
Hit-and-run narcotics chief a prolific political donor
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Erie County Sheriff John Garcia (left) and Chief of Narcotics Daniel J. Granville (right) at a press conference Tuesday. Photo courtesy 7 News.
Daniel J. Granville — the Erie County Sheriff’s chief of narcotics who last April plowed his county-owned pickup truck into at least seven parked cars on Buffalo’s West Side — is a prolific donor to local politicians.
So is his wife, former Buffalo police crime scene technician who now works for the Buffalo Sewer Authority.
And so is his sister-in-law, the Buffalo police lieutenant who supervised the police response to the accident scene — and who is now reportedly a subject of an Internal Affairs investigation into how police handled the incident.
Between the three of them, they’ve made well over $30,000 in political donations over the past decade, according to state and federal records.
Nearly two-thirds of that tally comes from Granville.
The leading beneficiary of Granville’s donations is his boss, Erie County Sheriff John Garcia, whose office kept the incident under wraps for nearly 10 months, has refused to answer questions about the matter, and failed to acknowledge a Freedom of Information request as required by state law.
Last April 11, shortly before midnight, Granville crashed his county-owned pickup into two parked cars on Jersey Street, then turned the wrong way down Prospect Avenue — a one-way street — and hit five more parked cars, stopping only when his vehicle “basically broke down,” according to a man whose car was damaged.
Investigative Post broke the story of the incident on Tuesday morning.
Donate to support our nonprofit newsroomAccording to witnesses, Granville was whisked away in a patrol car and the damaged pickup towed to the city auto impound on Dart Street. There is no indication in the police accident report — signed by Granville’s sister-in-law — that he was tested for impairment by alcohol, drugs, or medical conditions. He was charged with driving the wrong way down a one-way street, but the charge was reduced to a jaywalking violation, for which he was assessed a $150 fine, according to WGRZ-TV.
So far the county has paid out $60,000 to settle claims by the owners of the vehicles Granville damaged. That doesn’t include the cost of repairing or replacing his take-home sheriff’s vehicle, a 2016 Dodge Ram pickup.
Garcia on Tuesday refused to answer questions about the incident at a press conference where Granville was present, dismissing the matter as “just an accident.”
Garcia is the number one recipient of Granville’s political donations, over the past decade collecting $5,185 from his employee.
Second on the list of top recipients is U.S. Rep. Tim Kennedy of South Buffalo, where Granville has familial and political roots. Granville has donated at least $4,165 to Kennedy’s state and federal campaigns over the years.
Third on the list is Acting Mayor Chris Scanlon, another South Buffalonian. Granville has given Scanlon’s campaign committee $3,560, including $2,500 this past December.
Finishing fourth is Byron Brown, whom Scanlon succeeded in the mayor’s office when Brown stepped down in October to take the reins at the Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. Granville gave Brown’s campaign committee $2,750.
Rounding out the top five is former Erie County Sheriff Tim Howard, who made Granville chief of narcotics in 2017. Granville donated at least $1,733 to Howard’s campaign committee.
In all, Granville — who goes by D.J. — has given close to $20,000 to various politicians in the last 10 years.
In that same period, his wife has given nearly $10,000 to politicians. Maria Esquilin Granville’s donations include $3,700 to Brown, $2,750 to Scanlon, and $2,550 to the Erie County Democratic Committee.
She also co-hosted a fundraiser for Scanlon last July and another in January.
Her sister, Buffalo Police Lieutenant Lucia Esquilin, supervised the cops who responded to the trail of wrecked cars.
Lucia Esquilin has given politicians more than $4,000 over the past five years.
She gave $1,650 to Brown, the former mayor, before being promoted to lieutenant in 2023, and another $300 last year.
She’s given $1,298 to Scanlon in the past year, more than half of that since he became acting mayor last October.
In 2023 there was talk that Maria Granville might mount a primary challenge to Fillmore District Council Member Mitch Nowakowski, with Brown’s support. In the end she didn’t run.
The following year D.J. Granville gave Nowakowski’s campaign committee $500. Lucia Esquilin kicked in $100. Maria Granville did not follow suit.
D.J. Granville made $208,426 in 2024, according to state payroll records, while Lucia Esquilin took home $1113,018. Maria Granville’s job as intergovernmental coordinator for the Buffalo Sewer Authority pays $56,191, according to a filing with the state office that oversees public authorities.
