Brought to you by WBIW News and Network Indiana
Last updated on Friday, June 21, 2013
(BLOOMINGTON) - The state of Indiana and the Attorney General’s office has received a hefty civil judgment in the case of a former township trustee accused of misusing taxpayer dollars.
On June 18, Monroe Circuit Court Judge E. Michael Hoff signed a $362,115.97 judgment against Heather Cohee, the former Benton Township trustee in Monroe County.
"Former Trustee Heather Cohee has had an opportunity to explain and justify the undocumented charges paid by Benton Township but has not done so," read the judgment.
The Attorney General's office said the civil judgment amount against Cohee is among the top six judgments entered against defendants in State Board of Accounts audit lawsuits since January 2009.
The judgment amount is more than three times the amount of the financial loss suffered by the state, according to the document.
"Having obtained this judgment, we will initiate collections against this defendant to obtain any financial assets and reimburse the public treasury," Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller says.
Cohee resigned in March 2012 amid criticism that she hired her husband and daughter to perform tens of thousands of dollars of work for the township without proper documentation.
She is also facing criminal charges for theft and official misconduct and is expected in court for a pretrial conference July 18.
Cohee released a response to the State Board of Accounts, disputing some of the allegations.
"The gym membership was for every Benton Township employee and family member that wanted it," read the statement. "You will find that the board passed it in the monthly meeting. The deal with the gym was that anyone who wanted to use it would come in and add to my membership."
Current trustee Michelle Bright told the State Board of Accounts the township continues to deal with financial and legal ramifications as a result of Cohee's actions, including issues with the Internal Revenue Service and severe revenue shortfalls. She estimates it will take several years before the township recovers.
1340 AM WBIW welcomes comments and suggestions by calling 812.277.1340 during normal business hours or by email at comments@wbiw.com
© Ad-Venture Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved.