The Corning town supervisor was arraigned in Steuben County Court last month and pleaded not guilty to multiple felony charges.
Jennifer Mullen entered a plea of not guilty to falsifying business records, offering a false instrument and grand larceny.
Mullen was arrested in June. The charges allege she provided false information to the New York State Department of Labor to file for unemployment benefits earlier this year.
She has served as the elected town supervisor since January 2024.
Ahead of Mullen’s arraignment, some residents and colleagues expressed concern.
“Somebody better do something for this town, because she’s not,“ said Town Clerk Kathleen Morrow-Olmstead.
“I just want justice to be served," said Carol Ferratella, town resident and outgoing Steuben County legislator for District 13. “If she has done something wrong, I think she shouldn't be let off and walk out.“
Two additional charges attached to Mullen’s initial arrest made resident Joan Rosen “hopeful” for a “good outcome” for the town.
“The person who is now our supervisor, who oversees our budget and our money and has been charged with felonies having to do with money—that if she is found guilty, then we will no longer have her on our board,“ said Rosen.
According to the Steuben County Court case details, the full charges for Mullen are as follows: Falsify Business Records (3 counts); Grand Larceny (1 count); Offer File False Instrument (2 counts); added Falsify Business Records (4 counts); Offer File False Instrument (5 counts).
Fellow members of the town board were either unaware of the impending arraignment hearing or declined to comment.
Sarah Brancatella, deputy director for the New York Association of Towns, said there is a high threshold to have an elected official removed from office, outside of a criminal conviction.
“The only mechanism to remove an elected officer from a town position would be by commencing a public officers law Section 36 proceeding,” said Brancatella. “That would require the county district attorney's office, or a resident, to bring a lawsuit to the Appellate Division alleging a series of, I call them the ‘mals’: maladministration, malfeasance, something really bad.“
Town boards have no authority to remove an elected official or place them on administrative leave withholding pay.
But New York public officers law states if an elected official is convicted of a felony, the official is automatically removed from office.
In 2024, the town council approved a measure to confirm the “calculation for credit toward the New York State Retirement System” for Mullen’s retirement be based on an eight-hour “standard operating” workday.
The standard full-time operating workday for an elected official in the state is as few as six hours, according to the state comptroller’s office.
Mullen is due back in court on Dec. 2.
The town’s 2026 budget hearing is Nov. 18.
