However, if findings are made public that point at criminal activity, then the pressure will be immense to pursue charges.
Auditor General To Audit Walton Planning Department
- Thread starter Bob Hudson
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$800,000.00 never collected isn't pressure enough?
I'm not trying to stir the pot. An honest question as I don't know exactly how the process in question works. Is it possible that the developers paid the collective $800K, just not officially to the county? Is that the core issue that the investigations are working to discover?
The classic sleazy deal would be for a "clerical error" to be committed. Then the error maker gets an envelope with cash, probably a small fee by comparison to $800k. Or it might have just been someone doing a favor. Or I suppose an error of incompetence.
Sun Chaser, from the Grand Jury Report (I personally believe that portion of the Grand Jury opinion) the money was never collected due to a miscalculation by Melissa Ward. That oversight was NEVER reported BY Pat Blackshear to County officials and she has denied knowing the existence of the memo (the perjury charge) which brought it to her attention. That omission or that failure to report the miscalculation (in my opinion) warranted more than a perjury charge. State Attorney Bill Eddins stated in the GJ report the money was NEVER looked at as a crime.
If the average citizen failed to report missing/uncollected money to their superiors and then attempted to cover it up they would most likely be charged with a premeditated crime There does appear to have been a methodical attempt by Ms. Blackshear to conceal her activities. Did Ms. Blackshear benefit from the missing funds..I dunno and neither will anyone else because the State Attorney never looked at it as a crime. Is it possible that the developer paid the fee? Anything is possible but if you believe the GJ report it was never collected.
Will the Auditor General be able to ascertain whether or not this has happened more than the 2 times the Grand Jury discovered during the GJ investigation? I suspect that is why Gatez, Meadows, Harris and Hudson have pushed for a a forensic and operational audit. If those audits only pertain to the Planning Dept. and not the Finance Dept. which was headed by Imfeld, the Citizens of this County may never truly realize the scope of issues that have plagued this County under the "good ole boy" network.
Yup, that's one theory of the scam.
If I owe you $800k and you "forget" to collect it, you just saved me $800k.
I then "repay" you for your honest mistake by giving you some of the $800k you just saved me.
Mind you the actual players never touch the money or participate in the deal. That's left up to the County Employee that was most likely put in that specific position by the people who really benefit from the scam.
You also now have what qualifies for a Conspiracy Charge, two or more individuals that conspire to commit a felony...
This could occur with the Recreation Fees, Sewer Tap Fees, etc. It's a grand scheme to make money and rob the county blind. No one really cares because the money was never collected. That does not mean someone doesn't profit / benefit from it.
Oh, speaking of UNCOLLECTED fees in the planning department....wasn't OneVoteRo Cuchens ethics questioned back in 2006 for the benefit of a Dr. and his wife whose primary residence was in Mobile Alabama in regard to a sea wall that was built without the proper permits? If the permit process was skirted the fees were never collected.
In October of that same year an Attorney openly insinuated at a BCC meeting that the County had ROUTINELY mishandled the permitting process and also testified that the county issued other permits without the knowledge of county planning engineers.
In October of that same year an Attorney openly insinuated at a BCC meeting that the County had ROUTINELY mishandled the permitting process and also testified that the county issued other permits without the knowledge of county planning engineers.
You would think it would but apparently not. But if the Audit finds the 800,000 is just the tip of the iceberg, then the pressure would be for somebody to go to jail. As far as Pat Blackshear, I still have a hard time believing she would intentionally lie to a grand jury. She could have taken the 5th and have no charges against her. She is a very smart lady and it is hard to believe she would risk going to jail over something the State Attorney had already said was not criminal in his opinion. Very interesting stuff.
I have a hard time believing someone isn't lying. Not 1 but 2 virtually identical mistakes, the first error in 2005 and the second in 2006, both mistakes in favor of the same developer and a mysterious memorandum in one file dated in 2008 that described the mistake yet, no one accepted responsibility for writing the memorandum or bringing it to the attention of their superiors? Sounds like there was more than one "very smart cookie" since it took more than 10 years and a GJ investigation to discover either of them, not to mention the 20 or 25 letters of credit that were simply allowed to expire. It's probably a good thing that the GJ report doesn't say how much those letters of credit were worth or how much money has been lost in proportionate share fees or paid to outside engineering firms to provide data that the county didn't update annually.
One can only hope that the magnitude of money lost in just what the Grand jury did look at is enough to convince the County Commissioners that we can not continue to do business this way. One can also hope that whatever the operational and forensic audit uncovers would be a prime indicator that Pat Blackshear shouldn't be the only one who goes to jail.