? MADISON
COUNTY LIBRARY
GENERAL DELIVERY
MARSHALL NC 28753
VS RECORD
Serving The People Of Madison County Since 1901
Vol 87 No 3 Thursday, January IS, 1987
25c
__ 4' fa
County Audit Uncovers Errors
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
An audit of county records has un
covered several improperly
documented financial transactions
that took place during the waning
days of office of the former Madison
County Board of Commissioners.
The audit has led to questions from
the current commissioners about the
financial practices of the former
board and its employees.
J. Roger Gregg, certified public ac
countant with the Asheville Arm
Gregg k Lasher, P.A., recently con
ducted an audit of Madison County
finances from Dec. 1, 1985, through
Nov. 30, 1965. Gregg gave the results
of that audit to the new Madison
County Board of Commissioners at its
meeting Monday.
Among the findings of the audit are
a "significant increase" in county
checks to certain commissioners and
employees in the months following
the May primary.
The former commissioners -
James Ledford, Ervin Adams and
Virginia Anderson - lost in their bid
for re-election, falling to win the
Democratic Party nomination in
May.
That defeat in the primary meant
that the commiaaonera were "lame
ducks" until a new slate of commis
sioners, which would be elected Nov.
4, took office Dec. 1.
And it was during that poet
primary period that many of the
financial discrepancies found by the
auditors took place, Gregg said.
Among those discrepancies are, ac
cording to the audit report, improper
payments for sick leave and annual
leave, county checks for higher than
usual travel expenses, an increase in
business transactions owned by com
missioners and with other "parties
related to the commissioners" and in
adequately documented expense
payments.
The audit report also indicated that
the former county commissioners
had overappropriated money from
the county's fund balance to meet
budget expenditures.
Gregg, during his presentation
Monday, showed the commissioners
several "questionable" vouchers,
check stubs and expense accounts.
Named on those documents were
commissioners Adams and Ander
son, Anderson's husband, Harold,
and former county finance officer
David Caldwell.
"I am not stating for the record
that these are illegal," Gregg said.
"We are saying that the documenta
tion isn't there in all instances to
make a determination. There are
things here that look like we could
have a problem with."
Commissioners were cautious in
their response to the audit and its fin
dings.
"Some of these things I have a lot of
questions about," Commissioner
Reese Steen said after listening to
Gregg
"I don't want this to be perceived
as a witch-hunt on the last three com
missioners. I want to look through
-Continued on back page
Accountant Roger Gregg and Madison County
Commissioner Reese Steen examine county
financial records during Monday's meeting of
the Board of Commissioners. Gregg told the
Photo by Bill Stadenc
board his audit produced several examples of
improper documentation of financial trans
actions.
State Asked To Investigate
Accident In Hot Springs
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
and ANNE K1TCHELL
Staff Writer
Thomas Rusher, district attorney
for the 24th Judicial District, has ask
ed the H.C. Attorney General'* Office
to investigate a New Yew's Day acci
dent involving Hot Springs Police
Chief John Barrett and a former
Madison County commissioner.
In a prepared statement released
at about 13:90 p.m. Wednesday,
Rusher said he has asked for a
special state prosecutor to look into
allegations that Barrett was intox
icated at the time of the accident, and
at Barrett's counter-allegations that
the charges are politically motivated
Rusher's call for the involvement of
the N.C. Attorney General's Office
comes-?a(ter several days of
preliminary investigation by Rusher
"I have itia day requested the of
fice of the special prosecutor in the
Attorney General's Office to conduct
such investigation as he feels is
justified relating to the allegations
and cross-allegations involving the
New Year's Day incident in Hot Spr
ings," Rusher said in the statement.
"It is my position, based on
preliminary interviews, that there
exists a wide discrepancy in the
various accusations and allegations
which are being made by both r.ides,
Including allegations that the matter
it politically instigated," he said.
"It is my thought that someone
having no connection to local politics
should make decisions relative to this
matter to the extent that the special
prosecuter will handle the matter,
and that I will thereafter not be in
?
Hot Springs Police Chief John Barrett shows
the town's new patrol car, a replacement for
Photo by Ann Kitchell
the car he totaled in a New Year's accident.
.< ? 1 ?' - ... - . ' ? .
County Commissioners Approve
Ambulance Rate Increase
By BILL 8TUDENC
mm
Residents who make use of
m?Awi County *?*-"? iflWKji Medical
Service ambulances will now pay a
higher fee for rides to hospitals and
-a ? t ? .mi
doctors omces.
The Madison County Board of Com
missioners unanimously agreed Mon
day to adopt a new toe schedule for
Prjer to the change, those patients
were charged $10 aa hour tar every
hour over SO minutes.
Fes bad asked the mmmtasVwwrs
to increase that waiting fee to IB an
hour tar visits longer than ? minutes.
Right now. that waiting fee is $10
an hour. You've got a unit tied up out
side the county and two people Just
waiting," fl* saM."
"It is my suggestion that we go up
if SO minutes is a
?mount of time far a pa
tient to grt la and out of a doctor's of
fice without Incurring the additional
expense. Fox said that it is.
Pox had ako recommended a 100
percent *r** irr (bom IS cents a
mite to $1.50) in the mileage fee
trips outside of the base
Robert Cappe. chairman of the
Madteon cSy Board of Comm*
volved," Rusher said.
The ooe-vehicle accident, which oc
curred shortly after midnight on New
Year's Day, totaled the only patrol
car in the town of Hot Springs.
Rusher, on Monday, began looking
into allegations that Barret may l$ye
been' drinking alcohol pnar at a New
Year's Eve party prior to the acci
dent.
Barrett has denied that he was
drinking before the accident, and has
called the allegations "ridiculous and
politically motivated."
"For every person saying I was
drunk or acting inappropriately,
there's probably a ticket or some inci
dent motivating them," Barrett said.
Rusher said he was unaware of the
incident and surrounding controversy
until after he read about it in local
newspapers.
"I am concerned about potential
allegations that he was under the in
fluence. If we find witnesses who say
he was drinking, then we will pro
bably have him arrested and pro
secute him," Rusher said Tuesday.
-Continued on back page
Ponder Named
In Indictment
By ANNE KITCHELL
SUff Writer
A Madison County grand jury
handed down a bill of indictment
Tuesday charging Democratic
Party leader Zeno H. Ponder with
conspiring to profit from his
former position on the N.C. Board
i&Trtftsplorutiori. "
.Jfhe indictment charges Ponder
with using ior personal profit in
formation he acquired while serv
ing on the state board.
A bill of indictment was submit
ted to the grand Jury by 24th
Judicial District Attorney J.
Thomas Rusher, a Republican.
According to the indictment,
Ponder gained knowledge of pen
ding state approval of the con
struction of a public road. Ponder
is charged with secretly purchas
ing land near Madison County for
the purpose of monetary profit,
putting others at a financial disad
vantage.
Ponder was unavailable for
comment Wednesday morning.
His wife, Marie Ponder, said they
had received no notice 01 ine in
dictment.
"This is another case of political
harassment," she said.
Zeno and Marie Ponder, nephew
Leonard Ponder and business
associate Marshall Kanner ware
previously indicted by a federal
grand juiy on 17 counts of mail
fraud in connection with land pur
chases.
U.S. District Court Judge
Woodrow Jones dismissed those
charges in January 1M6 following
two days of testimony in federal
court.
Rusher said he conferred with
Randolph Riley, district attorney
in Wake County until Jan. 1, before
submitting the bill of indictment to
the Madison grand jury.
"In the end, both concurred that
it was appropriate to submit the
bill of indictment to the grand
jury," Rusher said in a prepared
statement.
"The district attorney will bring
this matter on for trial as prompt
ly as possible consistent with due
process of law."
Marshall Hits Roadblock
In Recreation Repair Plans
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
Marshall officials may have hit a
roadblock in their attempt to divert
more than (80.000 in unspent state
grant money on rehabilitation of the
town's crumbling recreation center.
Sam Parker of the Marshall Hous
ing Authority told the Marshall Board
of Aldermen Monday night that
rehabilitation and repair of the
recreation facilities would have a low
priority on thp state's funding list.
And that has forced town officials
to sit back and rethink their plan of
action
The board, at its November
moating, asked Parker to check with
the N.C. Department of Natural*
Resources and Community Develop
ment te see if leftover grant money
could be used for some much-needed
repair work at the community
Projects that meet basic needs -
that is, water, sewer or rehabilitation
- within the target area will have the
best chance of receiving state ap
proval, be said. The target areas in
this case are Island Road and Cody
Road-Chandler Drive.
Next on the state priority list are
projects that meet basic needs in
areas adjoining the target area. Pro
jects that meet basic needs anywhere
in the town limits are third on the
priority list.
"She did not say it (the recreation
center work) would not be funded,"
Parker said. "She the state
would look closer at artrtrw ing the
basic needs in the target area, then
an adjoining areas, than in the city
limits, and then a rehabilitation
' ' ' \
He reiterated that concern to the
board again Monday.
"We could do maybe four or five of
the 10 to 12 house* up there that need
rehabilitation," he said
But, if the town opts to use the
money in the Cotton Mill Hill area,
that will virtually guarantee no state
funding for the remaining houses in
the future.
"The important thing is that we
don't let the money go back to
NRCD," Parker said. "We have la
coma op with a project that is accsp
table to adfreas the baste problems af
the city."
DodMn aaked how much time the
town had before it bad to make a dad