Over four million dollars worth of mismanagement hasn’t turned many heads at the County. So it’s unlikely that a few hundred dollars worth of graft is going to change anyone’s mind about Denny Inman. But here goes.
Recently I learned about a little behind the scenes battle behind Inman and then County Auditor Mike Frerichs in early 2005. It looks like Frerichs was doing a little more than sitting on his rear in this particular instance and he deserves some credit for standing up to Inman. Here are the details as I’ve learned them so far
In 2004, Denny Inman attended two conferences for the Public Risk Management Association (PRIMA); one in Ft. Lauderdale and one in Colorado. I can’t speak to the merits of the conference for his particular job responsibilities. What is apparent from the documents provided me by our current Auditor, Tony Fabri, is that Inman tried to bill the taxpayers of Champaign County for over a thousand dollars in personal expenses. He ended up reimbursed for none of his expenses, including those which appear valid. Here is the packet of information.
The first trip was in June, 2004 to Ft. Lauderdale. The conference ran from June 14-16, 2004. Despite the three day length of the conference, Inman attempted to bill the County for six nights of hotel rooms, plus accompanying meals. He also billed the county for laundry services. The receipts for his meals include liquor on a couple of occasions. Two expenditures stand out most. A $43.99 bill for Sloppy Joes, which is known as an inexpensive bar and eating establishment in the Ft. Lauderdale dining guide. That bill was rung up at 11:42 P.M. Another receipt was for Rush Street which is listed on line as follows:
Dual sided dance club with 70's disco on one side and more modern progressive stuff on the other, it doubles as a Martini bar with tasty coctails like the Sour Apple at $10.75 a pop. A bit expensive, but good fun.
The receipt unfortunately doesn’t tell us on which side Inman chose to display his moves.
The second trip was to Copper Mountain, Colorado. The conference ran two days, August 2nd and 3rd. Inman decided to bill the County for 5 days. Interesting highlights for this trip include the fact that the extra hotel rooms are in Louisville, Colorado, just outside of Boulder, where I believe Inman went to college. Inman also charged the County for two bags of ice on Sunday morning, no doubt to keep his laptop from overheating from all the hard work he was putting in for taxpayers.
Inman of course has no defense on charging the county for nights on the town and alcohol. He tries to defend his extra days by suggesting that he’s meeting with other county officials. He gives no details about those meetings, and why those county officials would be so much better to meet with than, say, county officials in Joliet. Of course, one of the extra nights was for a Saturday night in Colorado. Does he really want us to believe that he met with other County officials on a Sunday?
There is no doubt that county officials can gain valuable knowledge and insight by meeting with officials in other counties. It generally happens at conferences, but a special trip for such a meeting would not necessarily be wrong. For example, I am taking a trip to the vacation hot spot of Lake County on some technical issues in preparation of designing a new voter registration system. Under Mr. Inman’s vague premise, I could travel just about anywhere to meet with local officials on elections.
Thankfully, for taxpayers, Inman's attempt to stick the county for his vacation expenses was rebuffed.
Big deal. It didn't bother anyone when former State's Attorney John Piland used a county credit card and on top of that charged airline tickets for his wife for a conference in Washington. It was denied, he fought to pay it back but did, and that was for hundreds of dollars.
Lighten up Mark.
Lighten up? That kind of cavalier attitude is dangerous with taxpayer money.
"A billion here, a billion there and pretty soon you're talking real money." Barry Goldwater.
"Lighten up Mark."
I think this sums up my reaction as well. As I read through the attached expense report, I was waiting to see evidence that Inman had expensed a big bill at a Ft. L strip club or something actually interesting.
Mark, what do you think the County should do, since it does appear that Inman attempted to get reimbursed for charges that didn't qualify as business expenses? You obviously put a lot of effort into this investigation -- what result are you seeking?
I don't want any of my taxpayer money going for extra hotel stays, alcohol, meals, etc. for county employees or elected officials when it is not part of their work for the governmental body. Whether it's an extra penny or an extra $1,000 on my taxes. It's wrong and Inman should have never even requested it.
I hope the anonymous commenters to Shelden's entry are not members of our illustrious county board. Obviously, Frerich's decision to not reimburse Inman for those items, and Fabri providing those documents was the appropriate action to be taken and I'm glad that Shelden was willing to enlighten us.
Why is it that Mark Shelden sounds like the most reasonable person when it comes to looking at the expenditures of public funds by county officials or the county as a whole?
I find it interesting that while tips were regularly in the 20-25% range, the tip at Rush Street was 75%! That must have been one heck of a $13.25 dinner to receive a $10 tip!
None of this is much, if at all, different from what politicans do every day.
Um, doesn't Inman have to actually get the money for it to be graft? If he requested reimbursement for expenses that were deemed inapporpriate and was turned down, it seems more like a matter of poor judgment.
I don't want one extra cent going for anything that isn't a legitimate expense. Hopefully, every incident like this will be exposed
and made public. Then maybe they'll think twice before trying to take advantage of the taxpayers. Maybe the "lighten up
person" wants to give them the extra spending money but I don't. This kind of activity is what gives govenment employees
a bad name! It must be true that the government never runs out of money because there is always the taxpayers.
like the difference between robbery and attempted robbery
He applied for it and was turned down. He reported it. Just like the IRS, report it all, and apply for reductions through exemptions and expenses.
Here is what might happen if you try and nickel and dime someone. Instead of driving to INDY and flying AirTran or Southwest, the person flies Amercan from Willard at a much higher cost. Instead of finding the least expensive accomodations, the person finds the most convenient accomodations even if it's 2 or 3 times as much. Instead of turning in a per diem food bill for under the per diem amount, the person orders as much as he/she can, even if they don't intend to eat it, because they can turn in a larger expense for the sole petty purpose of "pay back".
Nickel and dime people and they can pay you back, big time. REAL graft, REAL corruption, that's one thing, but complaining about this is petty and silly.
But that's all too much what Mark is about when it comes to his arch-fiend, Denny Inman.
like the difference between robbery and attempted robbery
I guess it'd seem more like "attempted robbery" if he lied about what the expenses were for and got caught. Submitting an inappropriate request and getting shot down still seems more like poor judgment than crime.
kind of like applying for free school lunch - if I get it great, and if not, no problem 'cause there is no penalty. Great stewardship of taxpayer dollars (yes, sarcasm)
kind of like applying for free school lunch - if I get it great, and if not, no problem 'cause there is no penalty. Great stewardship of taxpayer dollars (yes, sarcasm)
OK, I'm not a lawyer and I don't play one on TV, but it seems to me that the big issue would not be whether you filled out the application, but whether you lied on it.
Applying for a reimbursement for "business" expenses I would think implies that you think everything on the form is a "business" expense - no?
Applying for a reimbursement for "business" expenses I would think implies that you think everything on the form is a "business" expense - no?
And that would be where the "poor judgment" would come in.
Fine, it was wrong. HOW wrong we think it is can be evidenced by what we think County officials should do about it, and no one has answered that question yet. I'm sure there are disciplinary policies that should apply -- were they not followed? Are the relevant policies sufficient in terms of discipline?
OK, I'll start: Mike Frerichs questioned some of the charges and those that should not have been reimbursed were denied. Beyond that, the situation should have been dealt with according to County HR policies. I don't know if circumstances would warrant a verbal warning or some other official response, or if an informal but stern reminder about the relevant policies should have sufficed. I also don't know if Inman has been guilty of similar offenses in the past -- if he had, I presume this would indicate a different disciplinary response.
So, Mark, do you know or suspect that Inman's expense report errors were not dealt with according to County policies?
If it is just a case of "poor judgement", Wayward, then I guess we need to question Inman's intelligence, instead of his motives. I am not sure that is any better.
The County travel policies don't give specific penalties, but one can be disciplined or fired. i don't think any of Inman's superiors(board members) knew about this. As to what i want done now. Not much. Do I want this type of behavior to enter into the decision as to whether his contract should be extended? absolutely.
Forgive me for being dense, but in light of Inman's contract that says he can't be disparaged publicly, or whatever, can the Board even ask about this in an open session?
Mark, did he use any taxpayer time, equipment or suppies to fax anything that was political instead of work related? Just curious.
"Mark, did he use any taxpayer time, equipment or suppies to fax anything that was political instead of work related? Just curious."
You mean like Sen. Barack Obama's campaign did earlier this month?
:-)
"Mark, did he use any taxpayer time, equipment or suppies to fax anything that was political instead of work related? Just curious."
That's a very cheap shot that is entirely irrelevant to the question at hand. And from an anonymous poster, to boot. Your mother must be very proud of you. (If she knows who you are.)
Anonymous 1:10, that was cheap and mean-spirited, but SCHNAP anyway.
Mark, do you think "this type of behavior" ranks up there with the numerous Inman indiscretions, errors, blunders, and other annoying missteps you have catalogued? Granted, you haven't devoted as much effort to this issue as the nursing home debacle, but do those two issues even belong in the same discussion?
I'm thinking if Inman was otherwise respected in his County role and as a person, this would be largely a non-issue that would have been dealt with between Frerichs and Inman (and maybe the Board) and forgotten. I don't think you need this item in order to bulk up your list of reasons why Inman's contract shouldn't be renewed.
You summed it up eloquently in your opening statement: "Over four million dollars worth of mismanagement hasn’t turned many heads at the County. So it’s unlikely that a few hundred dollars worth of graft is going to change anyone’s mind about Denny Inman." Whose minds need to be changed? When is Inman's contract up for review, and do you expect it to be renewed? Will it be strictly partisan? In short, where are you going with this?
So, you accuse me of a cheap shot about Mark. This rant by Mark is also a cheap shot. And, if the pot calling the kettle black is verboten, what about the reference to Obama? Again, you are wasting time about nickles and dimes, same as people wasted time about Mark faxing stuff. This is, no big deal and his was no big deal, hardly the type of graft and corruption we see elsewhere. It's just another example of Mark continuing on his nasty personal vendetta against Inman.
Before Mark breaks bad on Inman, maybe he should be more pure about his past ways. "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone".
That leaves Mark out, doesn't it?
Mark has faced the voters, and has been re-elected easily. Would Inman fare as well?
Anonymous 1:10 pm: Nothing that Mark did or didn't do with a fax machine affects in any way whatsoever the findings of fact regarding Inman's actions, nor does it in any way impact the determination of the propriety of Inman's actions. In this particular instance, I don't care if Mark shot a man; it has nothing to do with whether or not Inman did something wrong that requires further action.
Your inability to separate these two events that are clearly distinct by virtue of time, principal actors, intent, purpose, variety of action, and degree speaks volumes about your complete and total lack of rational prowess.
"And, if the pot calling the kettle black is verboten, what about the reference to Obama?"
I wrote the orignal post about Obama faxing, not Mark. And I'm the one who put it in comments here. And, if you'd read it, you would have noticed that it was more than a little tongue-in-cheek. Lighten up, indeed.
"Mark has faced the voters, and has been re-elected easily. Would Inman fare as well?"
What makes you think Inman wouldn't fare well?
1. I know it was IP that commented on Obama. I know it was tongue-in-cheek, because it is "no big deal".
2. What Mark did was "no big deal".
3. What Inman did was "no big deal".
What IS a big deal is this constant petty vendetta by Mark against Inman. The County Board hired him, the County Board should deal with him. When Mark does it, it's just petty.
Elected officials shouldn't be so petty. Neither should anyone else.
well, maybe some people think personal use of a fax machine is equivalent to 1000 dollars worth of personal expenditures. i guess i don't. i've apologized. maybe one is forthcoming from inman.
Now the anon posters are putting a time after their name rather than just making a name.
Stop the madness! Use sign-in names! Even HSQDs can see the logic of this.
"The County Board hired him, the County Board should deal with him. When Mark does it, it's just petty."
I disagree.
Mark's postings about Inman, and about County government in general, always give me new information that I couldn't have gotten anywhere else. If he were constantly writing about Inman without sharing any new information, I'd think it was petty.
And, frankly, the County Board doesn't seem all that unhappy with Inman's performance. Maybe they aren't aware of some of these things? In that case, then I really want Mark to keep bringing them to our attention on here. If the CB doesn't think they're a big deal, so be it. But they should at least be aware, if they weren't already.
Anonymous 1:10, you clearly don't understand the meaning of "schnap." Touché, word, "I hear ya", "No sh*t" -- take your choice.
Saying it was cheap and mean-spirited doesn't mean I'm completely dismissing it. That's why I asked Mark where's he's going with this report -- he does have a history of going after Inman, and this incident seems a bit lightweight at best.
Once again, what's the point? What should the next step be in dealing with this issue? Mark, you're usually a good source of information when it comes to administrative matters for the County. What should happen, if anything?
anything to make wenalway scream
This is so typical. Remember when VOLK insisted on flying to TAMPA on the taxpayers dollars for lunch? Didnt' seem to be much a problem wiht the populace. As long as the citizenry insists on having all this big gasbags on public payrolls, then don't be surprised at this reckless excess. I recall a time when I was employed for goverment, when we would typically waste dollars on out of town conferences simply because we had an allotment and didn't want to come home to CU with excess funds and be decreased an amount the next year. Absolutely disgracefull behavior that sadly will go without any type of action...THANKS MARK!!
I'll just add a couple of things.
First, Mark Shelden has to be one of the most political County Clerks around. These posts, which often seem an attempt to make a big political deal out of stuff that is really not that big a deal or anybody's particular fault, paint his office in a negative light. I don't know much about what the County Clerk does (and neither do most folks) but I sure as hell know Mark Shelden has an almost constant axe to grind about something or someone (usually a Democrat *surprise*). It's a pretty negative impression one gets about our County Clerk.
Second, the notion that government workers should fly the cheapest airlines, stay in the cheapest motels, drive the smallest rental cars, eat the crappiest food, etc. is just silly. As a teacher I can tell you that getting the cheapest stuff (we call it "lowest bidder") is not a particularly good policy. Makes heaters break down faster. Paint chips easier. While I don't think our employees should be flying first class, or eating at five-star restaurants on the county tab, there is some justification in treating these people with some respect. Connecting out of Willard can save a lot of time and stress. Having an important meeting over a nice dinner also seems appropriate. Entertaining developers or investors might also be appropriate, to a limit. I don't think we should expect anyone who works for the County to live or act like a monk.
That said, Inman seems to have overstepped here quite a bit. It's a relevant issue to his contract IF it is a pattern. If it's not it might just be a case of bad judgment which he learned from. No one is perfect, but it is a pattern then it is an issue.
Cheers!
I honestly get an extremely positive impression of our County Clerk because he goes out of his way to point out such issues, and especially in that he maintains one of the most forward thinking and open county clerk offices I've ever heard of.
If one has an issue with the voting system, you can talk to him and get nearly immediate feed back on why things are the way they are or hear why your idea is noteworthy and woth implementing. On top of that his insider perspective of county issues, whether biased or not, is an invaluable tool for people to understand and hear about what is going on in local government that is often ignored over larger State and national politics.
To be quite honest I'd like to see similar posts from the other side on local Champaign Democrats website. I think such insider opinions are an invaluable tool to the public. And though it opens Mr. Sheldon to all sorts of extra flak, especially from anonymosu posters, he continues to post here. Personally as an independent it makes me respect him a great deal more, regardless of the letter, D or R, by his name. Though I feel this particular issue si a fairly minor abuse of one's position, financially or otherwise, it is good to see that even the minor transgressions are out in the open. A public official should be aware that his activities are under constant observation of the management (i.e. the public) so such transgressions are rare and minor.
Mr. Sheldon, you're doing one heck of a job. Keep up the good work. I'd vote for you even if you were a democrat, as your work as County Clerk has been exemplary regardless of your positions on issues beyond your official position, which I may not even agree with most of the time. I hope others follow in your example as the public, the true "boss" of politicians locally and beyond, deserve no less.
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Glock21 Op/Ed
I agree. Mr. Shelden; you're doing a heck of a job. After all, SOMEONE has to root out all the nasty ol' Democrats in county government. And you're one heck of a watchdog.
Just once in a while, in between looking through everyone else's alleged dirty laundry, you mind just doing your job for a change? Didn't think so.
Speaking of the extra flak...
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Glock21 Op/Ed
Here is wishing we get the dust settled from one lawsuit,,,,,before we agitate our county board into a another situation where they can stumble,,,,mumble,,,,and bumble their way into another lawsuit,,this one from Inman.
First, Inman is not a Democrat. In fact, he typically votes Republican when he votes in a primary. Second, his contract is up for a renewal in November of this year. The county can decide not to renew that contract and Mr. Inman would have no grounds for a suit. Third, please pass on complaints about what I'm not doing in my job or what needs to be improved. I'll stack my office, my staff, and my own performance up against any county clerk in the state. And if there is something that you think I should be doing that I'm not doing, I really need to know. If it's important enough for you to complain about, it's important enough for you to pass on to me.
My goal with a post like this is to build at least some public support for not renewing Inman's contract. This is far from a foregone conclusion.
Well, Glock, the next time Mr. Shelden writes one of his investigative reports about a Republican will be the first time.
Not exactly "fair and balanced" and not exactly what I'd like to see out of a County Clerk.
I think Mark Shelden is a good clerk and a crappy blogger. But a crappy blogger is better than a non-blogger like myself.
My main criticism is that he will often use his politics without incorporating readily available basic facts about his topic.
In this case, however, it's interesting to read the new facts he brings to the table.
I wondered about the word choice in this sentence though:
"It looks like Frerichs was doing a little more than sitting on his rear in this particular instance and he deserves some credit for standing up to Inman."
Could someone possibly come up with a more backhanded compliment for someone doing their job well?
"My goal with a post like this is to build at least some public support for not renewing Inman's contract. This is far from a foregone conclusion."
Now we're getting somewhere. But why is it not a "foregone conclusion" that Inman's contract won't be renewed? There certainly seems to be sufficient evidence of poor job performance (at least as reported by our County Clerk), and if Inman is indeed a Republican or R sympathizer, then partisanship alone should get him the boot, right?
What about the occasional attention given to the possibility that Deb Busey could do the job by herself? What is her relationship with the County Board?
With Inman's actions, not just those listed in this blog, my support for county board members, and my encouragement for others to run for county board will be at least in part dependent on the county board member's vote for renewal or nonrenewal of Inman in November. Petitions for county board are available in August. I believe they need to be turned in in December.
On a side note, I do appreciate Shelden getting information out to the public through this blog on issues of public concern or inerest.
Teacher Man... I'm not sure why blogging would ever have to be fair or balanced unless that was someone's choice. Even the posts that are meant to simply inform as opposed to persuade end up with comments to persuade anyways. Are you trying to silence his dissent? ;-)
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Glock21 Op/Ed
Ms. Wyman,,,,,,I certainly do not blame you for liking Mark getting the info out,,,he has almost single handily turned you're client Mr. Deedrich from the Grinch who stole Christmas,,,,,derided by his ex employees,,,,and fellow members of the taxing field,,,,,,,into a martyr,,,,,,,the little guy up againest the big bad democrats in power in Champaign county,,,,,again,,,,,I hope he cleans out the bank,,,,,,,just on principal,,,,,if people, meaning the county board are going to excercise power,,,,,,,then do it correctly, At this point what Deedrich did or did not do is no longer revelant,,,,,,,if they had proper grounds to dismiss,,,,,then they should have followed the proper legal procedure and be done with it,,,,,Instead of this sideshow act they are now caught up in>
How has Mark done anything to turn Deedrich into a martyr?
There are certainly people who are trying to turn Deedrich into a martyr, but Mark Shelden isn't one of them.
Oh IP,,,he doe's not do so by design,,,,,but by his nature,,,,,he can't help himself,,,,contrary to the few Dems that get on this site, and stick up for him, I can state pretty assuredlly,,,,the dems despise him,,,fear him the whole nine yards,,he keeps up the pressure on Deedrich,,,,,,,on Inman,,,and people pay attention, even someone who should know better like Ruth Wyman of all people! Deedrich has become a martyr,,,only partly because of Marks efforts,the constant harping that has gone on,,,it has poluted the climate to the extent, that a reasonable person has trouble seeing Deedrich without horns and a tail,,,,,getting grievences filed againest from service union employees is not exactly a sin,,,I was in that union for 11 years myself for the state,,,,,and saw them filed for a supervisor writting up an employee for sleeping at their desk,after being warned about it six times I may add. Also he upset some of the other vampires involved in the taxing process,so what!??! They have no sympathy from me. Like Branch Ricky said of Leo Duroacher in the old days,,,,: he has a way of making a bad situation immediately worse" or something like that. Someday it will bounce back on him,,,,,as they say in Oklahoma,,,,the sun dont shine on the same dogs behind everyday. If the dems were not so lazy and disjointed themselves it would happen sooner than later,,,,,,,just one mans opinion that has been around the block afew times:)
Well, I've been less critical of Deedrich than many. Certainly I've aired more about Deedrich than just about anyone else. That's what this blog does.
Xian, thanks, I think. Politically it would be much easier to not blog. Who knows, maybe some day I'll give it up. But I enjoy the debates, and hold out the faint hope that somehow I'll be able to influence public affairs from this blog.
The County Board could at any point decide to not renew Inman's contract. They haven't. There are a large number of members who think Inman is just a victim of circumstances. None of this is his fault. Believe me. I've been fighting this for about four years now. Long before the nursing home was an issue. The vote not to renew Inman's contract will be close, if it even happens.
Busey could do the job better by herself because capable people have their abilities enhanced when they have enhanced authority, which would be the situation here if Inman leaves.
I've never really understood why Champaign County needs co-administrators anyway.
Dual command structures have so many disadvantages.
...and we could save how much by eliminating Inman's salary? (I cringe as I ask this question.)
If the County Board were to vote not to renew his contract, must they offer a reason? If so, could it be as simple as a reduction in force?
"If the County Board were to vote not to renew his contract, must they offer a reason? If so, could it be as simple as a reduction in force?"
I haven't read the contract, so I don't know if it contains any governing clause regarding renewal. If not, the county board isn't legally required to say anything, since the contract is due to expire in any event. Advocates of openness might want an explanation, but I don't think there is any outside legal requirement to provide one.
Is there a REPULICAN officer holder SHELDON can, " out:? With the lock step DEMOCRATIC county office holders, it would seem to be stretch to find a RUPUBLICAN to out? Like the previous comment....I would vote for SHELDON if he were DEMOCRATIC, GREEN or REPUBLICAN. Final point, why are we so complacent about Taxpayer spending? I would hardly call VOLKS trip for LUNCH in TAMPA...reasonable?