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Mahoning elections board, clerk have not served suspensions over mistake
By DAVID SKOLNICK
YOUNGSTOWN
It’s been nearly a year since the Mahoning County Board of Elections voted to temporarily suspend its director and a clerk for failing to follow an internal- office policy, but neither has served even a day of suspension.
At the time of the Oct. 26, 2009, vote, election officials said they hoped the suspensions would end an investigation by the county sheriff’s office. It didn’t.
The sheriff was determining whether criminal activity occurred related to the board’s failing to send ballot language to county officials about the county sales-tax issue that was approved in November 2009.
The investigation began at the request of county Commissioners David Ludt and Anthony Traficanti and county Prosecutor Paul J. Gains, who were angry that the elections board failed to send them ballot language of a half-percent sales tax for review.
It turned out that ballot language wasn’t sent to any government entity with a tax issue on that November 2009 ballot.
For failing to follow an internal-office policy to send ballot language to those with tax issues on an upcoming ballot, the board gave Danielle O’Neill, the clerk responsible for preparing the language and mailing it to political entities, a five-day suspension without pay.
For failing to catch the mistake, the board ordered a three-day suspension without pay for Director Thomas McCabe.
McCabe receives about $63,000 annually in salary and O’Neill is paid about $36,000 in base salary annually.
Board Vice Chairman Mark Munroe said Thursday that because of the criminal investigation, the board held off on the suspensions even though he acknowledges that “what caused the suspensions [failure to follow an internal policy] did not change.”
The sheriff’s department ended the investigation without filing criminal charges.
Sheriff Randall Wellington said he concluded his investigation a short time after it was initiated in October 2009. He said no wrong-doing was found, and he didn’t share the results with board of elections officials at that time.
Munroe said the board only recently learned the investigation had concluded.
“The board will have to revisit this issue,” Munroe said. “The board issued the suspensions, and they need to be enforced. We waited because we thought there might be a connection between the suspensions and the investigation.”