Stair-Lomeli responds to theft
From The Oak Ridger
September 1, 2006
John Huotari
john.huotari@oakridger.com
CLINTON -- The Anderson County Trustee's Office was closed Thursday as state auditors pored over records following revelations that an office employee had allegedly stolen about $22,000 in property tax payments.
The employee, Deputy Trustee Katie Davis, has since resigned and reportedly repaid the money.
State and county officials said they aren't sure how long the audit might take. They also do not know whether any criminal charges might be brought against Davis or anyone else in the six-person office.
Officials in the Trustee's Office said they have known about the thefts since May, but they didn't report the thefts to state auditors and law enforcement authorities until earlier this week.
Anderson County Trustee Patsy Stair-Lomeli, who is retiring after 32 years in office, said she did not have anything to hide.
"I thought I'd done everything I was supposed to do," Stair-Lomeli said in a sometimes tearful interview in her office on Thursday, her last day. "The auditors said I did the right thing."
Stair-Lomeli said she had told Davis to resign and make restitution, or face prosecution. Stair-Lomeli and her daughter, Assistant Chief Deputy Gwenda Ford, said they had followed the procedure established in an earlier case in another county office -- although they declined to name the office.
Anderson County Law Director Jay Yeager said theft investigations should be turned over to law enforcement authorities if they rise to the level of a crime. Intentionally taking public funds could meet such a test, he said.
Yeager also said those who are aware of such thefts can face prosecution, depending on their knowledge and involvement.
"That's yet to be determined in this case," he said.
Yeager said he requested the state audit after receiving information from an anonymous Trustee's Office employee regarding possible inappropriate use of taxpayers' funds.
'Has to be cleaned up'
The alleged thefts have already revived a debate about nepotism -- favoritism shown to relatives -- in Anderson County government. That's because Davis is Stair-Lomeli's granddaughter and Ford's daughter.
Two candidates for Anderson County trustee, Republican Bob Walker and Democrat Rodney Archer, raised opposition to nepotism as a key campaign issue leading up to this year's primaries and general election.
Their concerns echoed a 2005 audit report by MGT of America that recommended county officials establish a nepotism policy. MGT developed that recommendation after studying the Trustee's Office, where the company said nepotism had created a number of problems.
Walker, an unsuccessful trustee candidate, said the Trustee's Office thefts and the response to them prove that nepotism is bad for county government.
"It just has to all be cleaned up," he said.
Archer, the new Anderson County trustee as of 12:01 a.m. Friday, said direct supervision of relatives is a problem. He said he planned to address the Trustee's Office revelations in a Friday press conference.
Archer defeated Republican John Stair, Stair-Lomeli's son, in the Aug. 3 Anderson County general election.
For her part, Stair-Lomeli said her family relationship did not affect the way she handled Davis' case.
"I would have taken the same action if it was anyone else," she said. "I treated her like I would have treated anyone."
Key weakness
Davis reportedly took money from a Trustee's Office cash drawer between December 2005 and March 2006, deleting payment receipts and pocketing the money. About 38 parcels of land were involved, Ford said.
Stair-Lomeli said she had, up until earlier this year, believed the "delete" option had been removed from office receipt programs. It has been removed now, she said.
A July 2006 Tennessee comptroller's report said the potential deletion of receipts is the greatest technological weakness in county governments.
"Users could delete or alter the receipts that were paid with cash and take the money," the report said. "No evidence of the original receipts would exist within the application, and the deposit listings and reports would appear complete."
The report includes recommendations on how to address such problems.
In the Anderson County Trustee's Office, officials discovered Davis' thefts when a few people who had received delinquent tax notices told office employees they had already paid their taxes and had receipts to prove it.
Davis, a 10-year employee, resigned May 4 and repaid the Trustee's Office on May 8, Stair-Lomeli said. The repayments required Davis to take out a second mortgage on her home, Ford said.
Davis' relatives blamed the thefts on an addiction to the painkiller Oxycodone, an addiction that reportedly developed after Davis had back problems a few years ago.
She is now in rehab, Ford and Stair-Lomeli said.
Another courthouse theft
Like Stair-Lomeli, Anderson County Clerk Jeff Cole has had to deal with employee theft. A former employee resigned late last year after reportedly confessing she stole about $1,300.
Cole's name was mentioned in a letter Stair-Lomeli wrote to state officials in regard to the alleged theft in her own department.
But Cole said he had responded differently to office thefts than Stair-Lomeli because he went to law enforcement authorities immediately while Stair-Lomeli did not.
"I dealt with it swiftly," Cole said. "I didn't sit on it."
'Hard to smile'
The state audit of the Trustee's Office is being conducted by the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury, Division of County Audit. The annual audit includes other county offices besides the Trustee's Office.
Stair-Lomeli said she has always had perfect audits -- until now.
"It's really hard to smile," she said. "I've never had anything hurt me like this.
"I'm so sorry that this happened on the day I'm going to retire."
Yeager said the alleged thefts are unfortunate for the Stair family.
"They've dedicated years of service to the county," he said.
"I hate to see Mrs. Lomeli leave office this way."
John Huotari can be contacted at (865) 220-5533.
Copyright 2006 The Oak Ridger. All Rights Reserved.