Michael Greene, the 50-year-old rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Albany, agreed to plead guilty to the violation just days before his trial for alleged criminal mischief was to begin in city court, Greene's attorney, Gregory Finkell, wrote in a text message.
Judge John Reilly imposed no fine but ordered Greene to pay $644 to the woman who accused him of vandalizing her car, Finkell wrote. The offense carries a maximum penalty of a $250 fine and 15 days in jail.
"Father Mike and I were prepared for trial and ready to convince a jury that he was not guilty. But in the 11th hour, the prosecution called me and offered to resolve the case with a plea offer to a non-criminal law violation: namely, simple trespass," his message said.
Court officials confirmed Friday that Greene pleaded guilty and was sentenced Thursday for the violation. Greene was ordered to stay away from the woman, court officials said.
An Albany Police Department arrest report said Greene allegedly slashed the front tires of the victim’s car “with an unknown cutting instrument” between 10 a.m. and 4:40 p.m. Jan. 11 at the parking garage at 111 N. Pearl St.
The case proved problematic for the Albany County district attorney's office. In the spring, Reilly rejected the defense's request that the case be thrown out. The judge ruled prosecutors met their burden to comply with discovery, but noted some issues with evidence related to the case. Video surveillance footage of the alleged Jan. 11 incident from the garage at 111 North Pearl St. was incomplete.
Police initially received some video evidence from security cameras but when investigators went back to retrieve more they learned that the system that records video for the parking lot does not store data beyond l4 days, and, consequently, the video footage was lost by the time investigators returned, the judge wrote in his May ruling.
The Times Union reviewed four separate video clips that show Greene walking up a ramp in the garage at 1:55 p.m. and then approaching the car at 2 p.m. A camera, aimed at the car's passenger side, shows Greene walking around to the driver’s side. It is not clear how long Greene was near the car, but by 2:03 video shows him appearing to leave the garage, walking down stairs and ramps.
The alleged victim, a woman in her 40s, said that Greene slashed her tires but Finkell said his client went to the alleged victim’s car to drop off a note from a floral arrangement that she had asked for and that he was beside the car for no more than four seconds.
In the arrest report, police said the priest crouched next to the front tires and slashed both with an unknown object. Finkell said that there was no cutting instrument and it is not clear from video reviewed by the Times Union that Greene had anything in his hand as he approached the car.
The woman alleged the vandalism followed a volatile romantic relationship that began almost immediately after Greene hired her to do administrative work at the church.
The Episcopal Diocese of Albany placed Greene on administrative leave while it carried out its own investigation. Officials from the diocese could not be reached for immediate comment.
The website for St. Paul's Church listed Greene as on administrative leave Friday morning.