BEDFORD— In November 2023, Lawrence County Prosecutor Sam Arp was contacted by the Indiana State Police and the Indiana State Board of Accounts about the then-Lawrence County Auditor Jessica Staggs and her involvement in missing funds while she served as Clerk-Treasurer for the Town of Oolitic.
“A meeting was conducted at my office with these two agencies, and allegations of a criminal violation were being made,” said Prosecutor Arp. “Following the Indiana Rules of Professional Conduct, a request was made for a Special/Senior Prosecutor to review the case for a charging decision and to handle its outcome. This decision was made to prevent the appearance of impropriety.”
“Once I filed for the Special/Senior prosecutor appointment, I was completely removed from the case and did not have any access to information relating to any investigation, any charging decisions, or the case outcome if it is filed,” he added. “The Special/Senior prosecutor controls all decisions made from the date of the special appointment without my knowledge or control.”
The Special/Senior prosecutor appointment was assigned to Jim Gallagher, the Chief Deputy Prosecutor under Prosecutor Scott Callahan and Prosecutor Michelle Woodward. Additionally, Gallagher served as a Judicial Magistrate for the Lawrence County Circuit Court and most recently served as a deputy prosecutor handling juvenile cases under Arp’s administration until 2020, when he again retired and became a Senior Prosecutor.
The Town of Oolitic received the State Board of Accounts Special Investigation Report into former Town Clerk-Treasuerer Jessica Staggs’s handling of town funds.
According to the report, they have forwarded the information to the Indiana Attorney General and Lawrence County Prosecutor’s Office so that charges can be filed against Staggs.
The investigation concluded Staggs was malfeasance, misfeasance, and nonfeasance in her duties. Staggs resigned as Lawrence County Auditor in December 2023.
Investigators found Staggs did not deposit more than $79,816.88 in utility receipts.
The investigation covers January 1, 2015, to December 1, 2020.
