Ohio Watchdog roundup: theft in office, good bills, bad bills, balanced budget amendment

I wanted to share with you a roundup of some of the stories on Ohio Watchdog:

Two thefts paint strange tales in Ohio takes a look at the two public officials who stole from their employer - and the way the public bodies dealt with the crime:

Gary Madrzykowski, director of the Olander Park System in Sylvania, Ohio, wrote himself a $2,500 check from the park’s bank account.

He also was taking cash out of the park’s cash drawer, but replaced it the next day so it would go unnoticed.

Earlier this month, Madrzykowski was questioned about the check after the park’s bookkeeper brought it to the attention of a board member. He resigned his $71,000 per year position.

The three-member park board does not plan to press charges. The $2,500 has not yet been repaid.

Sharon R. Vankanegan was the clerk and treasurer of the Kinsman Free Public Library in Kinsman, Ohio, a small community about a half-hour north of Youngstown.

For two years beginning in January 2010, she used the library’s credit card and Sam’s Club card to make $22,830 worth of purchases that were not for the library or for which receipts could not be located.

Continue reading...

OH court ruling hurts bonding companies, taxpayers examines the story of former Toledo Public Schools business manager Dan Burns who stole hundreds of thousands from the district and continued the thefts when he moved to the Cleveland school system.

Should a school official convicted of theft in office still get a state pension?

According to Ohio law he does, and bonding companies that insure against such illegalities are not entitled to restitution, an appeals court has ruled.

In Ohio, many public officials, especially those who handle money, are bonded to ensure the “faithful execution of their duties.” The public employer pays the cost of bond, like an insurance policy, and if money goes missing or is misspent, the bonding company will reimburse the public employer.

But with this latest ruling, the courts have made it clear a public employee’s pension cannot be garnished to recoup any money paid by a bonding company when an employee steals from a public employer.

Continue reading...

The good, the bad and the ugly in Ohio’s summer recess bills examines some of the bills that state legislators have introduced - from outlawing special elections in February and August to mandating the color of car headlights.

Then there is the latest from Gov. John Kasich who wants a constitutional convention to address a balanced budget amendment. My concern is whether or not a constitutional convention can be limited to just one topic and, if not, what damage might be done if some decide to just start re-writing it?

Quote of the Day - taxes

A lesson for all politicians and those who would seek government funding for anything:

"But how is this legal plunder to be identified? Quite simply. See if the law takes from some persons what belongs to them, and gives it to other persons to whom it does not belong. See if the law benefits one citizen at the expense of another by doing what the citizen himself cannot do without committing a crime." ~ Frederic Bastiat

4 in union truck charged with receiving stolen property

Early this morning, officers from the Perrysburg Police Department charged four men with receiving stolen property following several reports of missing political yard signs.

Perrysburg is a small town in Wood County just outside of Toledo, Ohio.

The stolen property was a truck bed full of Romney/Ryan yard signs, some measuring as large as 4 ft x 8 ft.

Also in the truck were tools such as drills, which might have been used to take down the large mini-billboard signs. The signs were allegedly removed from several private property and business locations across Lucas and Wood County.

Charged and summoned to appear in court were:

* John Russell, 39, of Eleanor Street, Toledo, Ohio
* Sean A. Bresler, 33, of Capistrano Drive, Toledo, Ohio
* Corey J. Beaubien, 37, of Kelsey, Toledo, Ohio
* Christopher Monaghan, 41, of Oak Street, Rossford, Ohio

The 2010 Ford pickup they were in was registered to the Sheet Metal Workers Local #33 on Corporate Drive in Parma, Ohio.

Interestingly, four individuals in the Toledo area with the exact same names are listed as officers of the Sheet Metal Workers Union, or sheet metal workers.

The website for Local #33 lists a John Russell and Christopher Monaghan as business agents for the Toledo District.

A John Russell is also listed as the Vice President of the Northwest Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, representing Local #33.

A Facebook page for a Corey Beaubien who lives in Toledo identifies himself as a Sheet Metal journeyman since 1999.

A Toledo Blade Log page from 2005 lists a Sean Bresler as a marriage license applicant. That Sean Bresler was listed as being 26 years old at the time - the same age as the one charged - and having an occupation of sheet metal worker.

Now, it is possible that the four men charged are not the same ones identified as union members and officers, but that would have to be a very large coincidence and would not explain how they got access to a truck registered to the Sheet Metal Union Local #33.

Below are screen shots of the references and the police reports.