Probe questions property values

June 28, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

Associated Press

CLEVELAND

Correction fluid was used to alter at least a dozen worksheets produced by a panel that helps set property values in Cuyahoga County, raising more questions about the government’s credibility amid a corruption probe, a newspaper reported Sunday.

The discovery comes days after the resignation of Keith Headen, a member of the Board of Revision who is accused of tampering with a worksheet to lower the property value of a suburban townhouse from $221,000 to $190,000.

The Plain Dealer discovered dozens of altered tax documents using a public-records request. Property values were blotted out and written over with other values — and none of the changes was dated or accompanied by authorizing initials, the newspaper said.

Board of Revision Administrator Robert Chambers, who oversees the three-member panel that Headen worked for, said he can’t explain the use of correction fluid. But, he said, the alterations could reflect new information received by board members, who have 30 days to change their decisions.

Chambers is independently examining scores of worksheets handled by Headen’s panel between December and March. Board policy prohibits the use of the correction fluid on worksheets, which are considered legal documents.

County officials have asked the sheriff’s office to conduct a criminal investigation. Headen’s attorney, Kevin Spellacy, acknowledges his client is under investigation but has declined to comment on the case.