Lucas County GOP Troubles

There is a weird story in the Toledo Blade that I want to highlight because this seems, to me anyway, another instance where the "zero tolerance policy" ought to come in to play.

Lucas County Republican Party Executive Director Joanne Wack's conviction in a New York state court for grand larceny - which she denied and then was forced to admit on the witness stand Monday - is not her only brush with the law.

A search through local court records yesterday turned up 13 legal judgments and three criminal cases going back to 1992 and involving medical bills, the Girl Scouts of Maumee Valley, a car wreck, and passing bad checks.

But despite a record of having to be taken to court to pay her debts, and what one upset Republican says was a clear cut case of perjury, Wack continued to maintain the confidence of some local party leaders and elected Republicans yesterday.

Uhh...okay...Before we get to just what the heck this is all about, I need to introduce you to Jon Stainbrook...

A dispute between Mr. Stainbrook, a GOP activist who is mounting a challenge to the current party chairman, Bob Reichert, and local Republican leaders, spilled over into the courts Monday, where Wack was questioned about her felony conviction.

Mr. Stainbrook, who lives in South Toledo and is self-employed in public relations, has wrangled with Wack repeatedly over what he contends are her unethical attempts since January to block his candidates from being elected to the county Republican Party central committee.

Okay...on with the show...

He said yesterday that the series of petty civil and criminal cases, as well as the felony grand larceny case out of Westchester County, New York, compromise her ability to represent the party.

"Joanne Wack has a pattern of criminal and unethical misconduct and must be removed from party leadership. Obviously she cannot stay. Her taking money from the Girl Scouts - that's just unethical," Mr. Stainbrook said.

Let's get to the details:

One of the judgments against Ms. Wack was filed in Toledo Municipal Court by Maumee Valley Girl Scouts Inc. in November, 1999, for the sum of $1,092.

Judgment was rendered by the court on Jan. 21, 2000, in the amount of $1,152, with court costs.

A call to the Girl Scouts organization was not returned.

Records in Toledo, Sylvania, and Oregon Municipal Court reveal 13 civil cases against Wack involving a total of $16,977 since 1992. She was also charged with three criminal cases of passing bad checks or forgery.

In November, Wack was charged with forging a check for $790 at the Shop & Save, 653 Main St., but prosecutors dismissed the charges after restitution was made.

Two charges of passing bad checks were filed in 2006 by the Island Variety convenience store, one for $430 and a second for $200 in 2005.

The case was dismissed last October because restitution was made, according to the Toledo Municipal Court record.

A bad check charge filed on behalf of East Toledo Animal Clinic in Toledo Municipal Court for $36.50 was dismissed Oct. 26, 2007, when restitution was made.

Other plaintiffs included St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center, Armstrong Ob/Gyn Clinic Inc., American States Insurance, Alfred Hartkopf-DDS, Northcoast Financial Services, Toledo Hospital, Computer Discount of Maumee, Great Lakes Credit Union, Brown Imports, First American Cash Advance, East Toledo Family Center, and Toledo Clinic.

Municipal Judge Tim Kuhlman, who handled bad check charges, said they were typical.

If, by now, you aren't getting that slick Rawnica Dillingham-Wilson-Dillingham-Ruscigno-Dillingham vibe, you aren't reading the same story I am...

Anyway, all of this is background for the real story...which is this:

During a hearing in Lucas County Common Pleas Court Monday over the makeup of the party's central committee, Wack was on the stand when she was surprised by the question of whether she had ever been convicted of a felony in Ohio or any other state.

She answered no. When the court was shown evidence of a grand larceny conviction in Westchester County, New York, the hearing was recessed briefly.

When Wack retook the stand she admitted to having a felony conviction and to having been on probation.

John Weglian, a top assistant in the Lucas County Prosecutor's Office, said he did not plan to pursue an indictment for perjury because the testimony was corrected quickly and no one was deceived by the false testimony.

Donald Iiams, Jr., of Monclova Township, a failed candidate for Lucas County Republican Party Central committee, who has accused Wack of illegally endorsing his opponent in the central committee race, said he's not satisfied with the county prosecutor's refusal to prosecute.

"If he doesn't have the resources, does that mean everyone in Toledo can commit perjury because you don't have the resources? That's just telling you the sad state of affairs in Lucas County," Mr. Iiams said.

This ain't good.

Maybe I'm missing something here, but it seems to me that what we have here is another one of them cases where we ought to have been MUCH more careful about who we place in leadership roles. Election disputes are one thing...and I'm not going to get in to that because I have a feeling that I'm not getting the whole story from our friends at the Blade...but let's deal with the reality that Republican leadership needs to be ridding itself of folks like Ms. Wack. A position of leadership is not a place we should be putting people who have troubles with personal finances...there are just way too many "opportunities" in politics for really bad stuff to happen.

At any rate, Bob Bennett and Kevin DeWine ought to get out in front of this story too. Will they???