Jackson Free Press

More than five months since receiving a demand from Mississippi State Auditor Stacey Pickering, Hinds County District 1 Supervisor Robert Graham has not paid the $45,736 the auditor said Graham owes the state.

Lisa Shoemaker, a spokeswoman for the auditor, said that Graham has not paid the money he received in salary as a city of Jackson employee while, according to Pickering, also operating a private business.

Shoemaker said the matter has been handed over to an investigator from the state attorney general's office. Jan Schaefer, a spokeswoman for Attorney General Jim Hood, said the agency's policy prohibits her from confirming or denying an investigation.

The trouble for Graham started in May 2011 when Pickering's office issued a demand for wages Graham received from the city between 2004 and 2007 when he worked as a spokesman for the Jackson Police Department. Citing time sheets, Pickering alleged Graham also conducted dispatcher certification classes while on the city's payroll.

In June, Graham characterized Pickering's investigation as political. "I believe they're going after me," Graham told the Jackson Free Press at the time. "I'm not finding anything coming out of the state auditor's office on any relevant issue against Republicans, but I see that they're investigating me."

Graham worked for the National Emergency Communications Institute as a contract instructor. Emergency-response agencies such as fire departments and American Response Ambulance service paid Graham $495 each for their employees to take his course. The course included a $95 emergency response manual and, upon completion, a NECI certificate.

NECI Executive Director Charles Carter instigated the investigation when he sent a complaint to Pickering's office in October 2007, accusing Graham of failing to obtain permission from the Mississippi Board of Emergency Telecommunications Standards and Training to conduct the training and of using copyrighted NECI materials without paying NECI.

Carter said that aside from defrauding the state of Mississippi, Graham also defrauded the city of Jackson by conducting private contract work while on the city's payroll, a practice commonly called double dipping. 


Graham, who did not respond to questions Monday, in June questioned why Pickering, who is a Republican, released the results of his investigation during an election year, considering Pickering's office had been working on the case for four years.

"The timing seems suspect," said Graham whose Republican opponent for the District 1 supervisor's spot, Roger Davis, dropped out of the race weeks before the Nov. 8 election. Graham defeated John Dennery, who took Davis' spot on the ballot.

Comment at http://www.jfp.ms.

Previous Comments

ID

165599

Comment

If Graham was not "double dipping" it should be easy enough to prove. Wonder why he isn't defending himself with some facts instead of conspiracy theories? If he was being paid by the city and giving these classes as a city employee why isn't the city entitled to the revenues he generated while he was on the clock for us? Namely, the $495 per student who took the class while the city allegedly paid for the instructor. Anyone know where these classes were held?

Author

WMartin

Date

2011-12-15T13:27:02-06:00