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Last updated on Tuesday, September 8, 2015
(SPEEDWAY) - Even after the scheduled guilty plea later this month of Speedway’s former fire chief, the state will still be funding his retirement.
Prosecutors and state auditors accuse Mark Watson of depositing $49,000 in department funds in his own checking account, and putting personal expenses on his town credit card.
But while 26 states revoke public employees' pensions for felonies related to their duties, Indiana doesn't. Senate Pensions Chairman Phil Boots (R-Crawfordsville) says Watson's paid into the plan and earned his benefits. He says he'd be open to a proposal to change the law, but says he's not aware of any attempts to do so.
Boots notes Watson is accused of stealing from the fire department, not the pension fund itself. That's a narrower criterion than any of the states which allow pension forfeiture.
Five states have a specific list of crimes which can cost you your pension, and three states limit the law to legislators, judges, or statewide officeholders. But most say any public employee can lose his pension for crimes committed in connection with their duties. And West Virginia can revoke the pension of an employee found to have provided "less than honorable service."
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