A former Town of Tonawanda Police officer has lost his job and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in a plea deal stemming from a 2019 traffic crash.
The Erie County District Attorney's Office said Howard Scholl III, 38, pleaded guilty Thursday morning in Erie County Court to a misdemeanor second degree count of falsifying business records. He was originally charged with a felony charge of first-degree falsification of business records and misdemeanor insurance fraud.
Scholl was off duty when he drove his vehicle through a stop sign at Englewood Avenue and St. Johns Avenue on Jan. 19, 2019, causing a collision with another vehicle. Scholl filed an accident report claiming that his wife, a passenger, was driving the vehicle.
Scholl was ordered to perform 100 hours of community service within six months, with a conditional discharge, and the case against his wife was adjourned in contemplation of dismissal. Scholl also submitted his voluntary resignation from the town police force Wednesday, as part of the plea deal.
