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Commissioner resigns after guilty plea
Health board officials made no formal comment on the resignation of their former health commissioner.
LISBON — At least one member of the Columbiana County Health Department still supports former health commissioner Robert Morehead.
Dr. Jack Amato, board chairman and physician, said Friday, “I still believe that Bob Morehead is not a thief.”
Morehead, 59, of Wellsville, resigned at 4 p.m. Thursday. He had pleaded guilty Wednesday to a charge of theft in office and faces a potential sentence of a year in prison.
He is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 13 in common pleas court.
The board met Friday morning and voted unanimously to accept his resignation. Board members made no comment after taking the action.
Barbara Knee, the nursing supervisor, was named interim director until next Wednesday, when the board will meet in regular session and begin to look for a new commissioner.
Morehead was indicted on theft in office, theft and five counts of forgery that could have resulted in a prison sentence of 7 1‚Ñ2 years.
The investigation was sparked in 2004 after a Vindicator review of county travel expenses.
Shawn Apple, board vice chairman, and Dr. Amato, both said they did not know about Morehead’s spending until it came to light by the state auditor’s scrutiny of board expenses.
“We put an immediate stop to it,” Dr. Amato said, referring to the board’s changing its policies regarding credit card use.
Morehead was using a county credit card to buy personal items. He repaid some of the purchases.
Morehead also recently repaid $20 to the county for an unidentified expense. County Auditor Nancy Milliken said such reimbursements are supposed to come with an explanation with documentation from the health department.
Morehead has repaid $1,257 of the findings against him. The Ohio auditor’s office, however, has said that Morehead still owes $10,700. That includes $2,022 in revenue involved in the theft-in-office charge.
Atty. James Manken of the state auditor’s office, who was appointed as a special prosecutor to handle the case, said after the plea that Morehead had submitted paperwork for restitution under another health department worker’s name.
Despite the serious charges, Morehead remained as health commissioner.
Dr. Amato said Morehead remained in office because of advice from the county prosecutor’s office in a 1978 case. In that case, a county health department worker was caught stealing money.
Dr. Amato said the county prosecutor’s office said the woman would have to be paid even if she were sent home while facing the charges. Health officials decided to keep her, and they also decided to keep Morehead employed.
County Prosecutor Robert Herron could not be reached.
wilkinson@vindy.com