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VIENNA -- Its former fiscal officer is spending the next eight years behind bars, but the township is still looking to tie up loose ends.
Residents at Monday's meeting asked where the remainder of the restitution was from former fiscal officer Linda McCullough, who was sentenced to eight years in prison July 29. Her sentencing included the requirement that she pay $120,371 in restitution to the township.
Trustee Phil Pegg, who told residents earlier that McCullough has already made one $86,000 payment to the township, clarified that the $33,000 from the OPERS (Ohio Public Employees Retirement System) portion that she forfeited was counting toward it.
Pegg added that she was "still behind," however.
"She still has to pay $16,000 for the forensic audit; there's other things she still has to pay on top of what she was sentenced for," Pegg said. "Then, we have to file a civil suit for the other things she has taken -- and it's a lot."
Trustee Mike Haddle said Pegg was referring to the "findings for recovery," and current Fiscal Officer Jason Miner had put together a report of things applicable to it, such as fines and penalties the township could go after.
Pegg said officials were in a "stuck place," noting that the township is current on Social Security and OPERS for the "first time in a long time."
"The IRS still wants $202,000 in back penalties and fees and other things like that; they want the township to pay that," Pegg said. "The only problem with that is, Ohio Revised Code says the responsibility of the fiscal officer who incurred that -- which is Linda."
Pegg said the only thing they could do was file the civil suit against her for the back dollars, which was one item.
Pegg said no specific department was getting hit by the $202,000, it applied to the township as a whole. He said they had similar fees and penalties with OPERS, but they were owed by McCullough exclusively, and there was a "bunch of those."
Cindy Johnson, a Vienna resident and fiscal commission member, asked how the township was to get money from McCullough's insurance.
Miner said he met with the insurance broker he had been working with since taking over on the case.
That person, Miner explained, said the insurance company gets few cases like the one the township has.
"He’s got absolutely no clue how to handle this because they’ve never had it before. So, the insurance company -- Acrisure -- is consulting their legal counsel to see if they can release funds to the township and then go after Linda," Miner said. "They don't know how it works because they've never had to deal with it."
Miner said township officials filed a claim with Acrisure, reiterating that their broker, representing one of their branches, represents approximately 67 townships in the state and hasn't had to deal with such a case.
Miner said McCullough had $190,000 in insurance, which was "pretty sizable."