Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls To Court Clerk Patricia Clancy: About That $1 Million You Owe Cincinnati, Check Please!

When Can City Expect Funds From Clerk?

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- With the city facing a $60 million hole in its budget -- and 144 Cincinnati police officers facing the loss of their jobs -- Cincinnati Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls is pressing the county court clerk's office to deliver forfeited bail bond funds owed the city.  Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Patricia M. Clancy, a Republican, said last month that at least $960,000 is uncollected and due the city police department under court orders.  Qualls, a Democrat and Charter Committee member, wrote Clancy back five days ago seeking a timetable that will detail exactly when Clancy's office will start delivering the money.  Some of the uncollected bail bond forfeitures date back to the 1990s.  Qualls said "there is money owed to the City of Cincinnati" and every cent is needed -- especially with cops looking at layoffs.  Qualls emphasized the urgency of her request.  There are records showing the county clerk has failed to collect forfeited bonds for years.  The money -- which is owed by defendants and bondsmen hit with forfeitures when criminal suspects dodge a court date -- is earmarked for distribution to prosecutors and law enforcement agencies.  Here's an excerpt from Qualls letter to Clancy:

"Your letter states that the City would be entitled to receive a portion of the bond forfeitures collected based upon certified judgments from bail bondsmen and their insurance carriers of $960,000.   The letter also says that your office has been working with the Hamilton County Prosecutor's office to collect on the certified judgments against bail bondsmen and their insurance carriers, and that you expect a successful resolution in the near future.  Is the $960,000 amount the total amount, or are their other forfeitures that will be determined through an audit?  Has the city ever received any funds based on certified judgments in the past?

I am requesting documents of the $960,000 in certified judgments, as well as what portion of the amount is due the city at this time, the amount of the collections, and a time frame for the Cincinnati Police Department (CPD) to expect the funds that are due it. . . I am sure you understand the urgency of this request since City Council will be making decisions about potential cuts to our public safety personnel over the coming weeks."

Republican Cincinnati Councilman Charlie Winburn: Pocketing $$$ That 'Could Be Illegal'

Refunds From City Council Members



 CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Fifteen months ago, Charlie Winburn was running for a seat on city council and said he had uncovered chicanery at City Hall.   Sitting council members were receiving health care insurance and pension fund contributions that he called "unauthorized benefits received through current budget expenditures."  And their salaries were too high.  Republican candidate Winburn was blowing the whistle on the scam.  He issued an Aug. 25, 2009 press release under this headline:  "Winburn calls upon city council to give up questionable taxpayer funded health and pension benefits."   The move would save $400,000 and end a practice that Winburn said "could be illegal."   



Fast forward to today.  Winburn appears to be taking the benefits of public office that he deemed improper at best, illegal at worst.  Despite the talk, once in office Winburn never seems to have lifted a finger to halt practices he denounced as possibly illegal.  Of course, it could be that his complaints were a scam, an effort to make something out of nothing.  In fact, he now seems to be sharing in the loot -- or what he considered loot when he was on the outside.  And though he has the option of refunding his paycheck to the city, he doesn't seem to have given much back.  Winburn appears to personify an old proverb:  Talk is cheap.      

Winburn could use the city's voluntary refund option to return all, or part, of his $60,650 annual council salary to the city.  Records (up to date through 11/18, see accompanying chart) show he returned $1,400 last January.  The same City Hall finance and accounting records show Democratic Mayor Mark Mallory refunds $165.87 out of each paycheck; Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls, another Dem, returns $96.82 biweekly, and Councilman Cecil Thomas, also a Dem, gives back $50 from each paycheck.  Republican Leslie Ghiz refunded $132.80 last January.  Refunds from the three Democrats total $5,941.11 so far this year.  Together, the two Republicans have refunded $1,532.80. 

Both Winburn and Ghiz have complained that council's pay package is too much -- yet they haven't shown much interest in voluntarily rebating sums they consider excess.  Winburn in particular was opposed to the salary, health insurance and pension contributions benefits for council members, whom he described as part-time workers.  He said council members got a full-time salary for a part-time job.  From his press release 15 months ago (when he was running for office):

"Current city policy for part time employees who work less than 30 hours per week does not provide health care benefits.  This decision to cut benefits would put all part time employees, including council members, on the same playing field as it applies to health care benefits.

"Winburn said Councilwoman Ghiz's (she, too. was running for office at the time) proposal to cut council pay is a good start but doesn't go far enough in reforming the total council compensation package for city council members . . ."

Winburn said any savings should go to prevent the layoffs of fire and police.  Now it looks like it was all talk.  Winburn, who complained last week that the city misspent $5,000 on a streetcar display on Fountain Square, is silent about his own complicity this year in activities he labeled possible misfeasance last year.  After all, it was he who said council's payroll package "could be illegal."  Meanwhile, he hasn't noted that the money refunded by the mayor, Qualls and Thomas exceeds the cost of the streetcar display.  And city officials who handle Cincinnati's payroll and budgeting say they haven't heard very much this year from Winburn about cutting his own salary, or reducing benefits packages.

Chris Bigham, superintendent of accounts and auditing over payroll at City Hall, said Winburn has taken the full amount of every council paycheck since January:  "I have not heard one word from him about refunds or anything like that.  He did make a donation earlier this year."

Budget Director Lea Eriksen said she has no memory of Winburn contacting her about reducing his council salary and benefits.   "No, he's not brought that up to me,'' Eriksen told The Daily Bellwwether.  "I follow Council items closely.  If he would have done anything, I would have seen it."

So what could Winburn voluntarily cut from his own pocket?  Here's the list of things that he wanted slashed:  $65,670 in salary; $9,198 annual pension benefits; $5,000-$8,000 annual health benefits.  He said council's compensation package was "$83,268 approximate total of annual compensation."   And in Winburn's world every penny was "questionable" and "could be illegal" and "misinterpretation of what they are entitled to under the term 'compensation.'"

[UPDATE: 4:55 pm -- Winburn copied The Daily Bellwether on an e-mail he sent out today that explains why he's taking city benefits:  "Regarding your inquiry, I based my original question upon a plain reading of the Cincinnati City Charter. We asked and the city administration answered. They determined that the benefits paid for council members were considered compensation and were not a violation of the Charter. When I joined Cincinnati City Council in December, 2009, I opted out of the City-provided benefits because I was covered under another plan. I was subsequently told by the City that I could not opt out of their plan and was required to be covered. If you can provide any further information to me on whether these benefits are illegal, please let me know so that I can opt out altogether."]

Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Patricia Clancy Confirms The Number: Bail Bondsmen Owe Cincinnati $1 Million In Forfeitures

Cincinnati Is Owed A Wad

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- The clerk's office reports the city's share of uncollected bail bond forfeitures is at least $960,000 -- and is likely to be substantially more.  That as-yet unknown sum reflects debts involving property bonds where no action has been taken to seize real estate.  All of the bonds were posted by accused criminals who did not want to sit in jail while awaiting court dates and trials.  Money from forfeited bonds is earmarked to combat drug crimes on Cincinnati's streets.  But the cops haven't been getting all the cash owed, apparently because of bottlenecks at clerk's office in the courthouse.  The bonds were forfeited because the suspects didn't keep their written guarantee to show up in front of a judge.  County officials are supposed to grab money and property posted as bonds, but have been slow to act -- some of the forfeitures date back to the mid-1990s.   Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Patricia M. Clancy -- whose office is responsible for bail bonds -- disclosed the sum owed to the City of Cincinnati.  Clancy was responding to Cincinnati Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls, who last month said the money was needed to pay for police to fight street crime.  The city faces a $50 million budget deficit and may have to law off cops.  Clancy wrote Qualls yesterday:

"In response to your questions, the City would be entitled to receive a portion of the bond forfeitures collected based upon certified judgments from bail bondsmen and their insurance carriers of $960,000.  This amount represents the gross amount of the bonds, and does not reflect the possible reductions permitted under the statute.  The City's portion of the bond forfeitures against individuals (parents and family members who posted property) will be provided to you shortly.  The Clerk of Courts has placed liens on the individuals and the property posted,but has not taken any action to foreclose on real estate of the parents and family members to date."

Clancy said she's got lawyers on the job:  "Also, the Clerk of Courts has been working with the Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office to collect on the certified judgments against bail bondmen and their insurance carriers.  The Prosecutor's Office met with the Common Pleas and Municipal Judges on this issue and is working with the bondsmen and their insurance carriers to collect on the certified judgments.  We look forward to a successful resolution in the near future."

Any money collected on a bond forfeiture goes to the city if the city prosecuted the case through its law department.  If the County Prosecutor handles the criminal case -- a drug case, for example -- the money is split with 80% of the forfeited bond going to the Cincinnati police, and 20% to the prosecutor's office.  The Daily Bellwether has been reporting on the uncollected bail bonds since last month and you can read all the earlier posts by by clicking here. There are a lot of comments -- mostly anonymous -- that indicate there is a backstory that has yet to unfold publicly.

Cincinnati Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls Wants Bail Bond Accounting: Sees $$$$ Due City Cops To Battle Neighborhood Street Crime

Qualls Says Show Me The Money

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Roxanne Qualls heads the City Council's budget and finance committee and is looking for every penny available to close a $60 million budget gap.  Qualls has written Republican Clerk of Courts Patricia M. Clancy seeking a "formal accounting of cash bonds that are uncollected and the amount due to the CPD" -- Cincinnati police division.  The letter was hand-delivered to the clerk's office last Friday.  So far, Qualls has not gotten a response.  The Daily Bellwether has been reporting for nearly two weeks that Hamilton County judges have ordered cash bonds forfeited and that more than $4 million could be due and owing. Some of the uncollected bail bond money dates back to the mid-1990s.

 Meanwhile, there is a new twist to the bail bond scandal that seems to involve missing records.  Last week, the clerk of court's office released a computer printout showing it had 56 separate felony case where forfeited bonds had not been collected. But it now appears the list wasn't entirely accurate.  Perhaps there was a book keeper error, perhaps a mistake.  Or maybe the public records are just not up to date.  Or maybe something was being hidden.   



Judgment Missing from List 

 The Bellwether noticed that Case No. B-0802589 was not on the list made public last Thursday. The list was released in response to a freedom of information request filed by Hamilton County Democratic Chairman Tim Burke, who asked to see every forfeited bond that was owed. There is a $100,051 judgment for a forfeited bond in B-0802589 that was put on the books last year. The judgment has not been cancelled, according to county records. The case involves a convicted sex offender -- now a state prison parolee -- who failed to show up on court on charges that accused him of failing to register in Hamilton County. Interestingly, that offender had been shipped off to prison in an earlier criminal case, B-0403402, decided by Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge John Andrew "Skip" West. The plot thickens a bit because West forfeited a $20,000 cash bond after the defendant didn't show up for a court date. And that forfeiture is still owed to the county. Bottom line: one sex offender accounts for $120,000 in uncollected bail bond forfeitures involving two separate cases that date back six years.

Big Surprise In Cincinnati Enquirer's Council Picks: No Nod For Ex-Dem Mayor Qualls

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- The newspaper's city council endorsements are out online today, and it is supporting five Democrats, three Republicans and one third-party Charterite. The newspaper said it is not backing former Democratic Mayor Roxanne Qualls, who was appointed to a council seat last month and is running under the Charter label. Qualls is one of the most popular politicians in Cincinnati and is seen as a lock. Her sin in the eyes of the Enquirer's editorial board: She has dared to openly question plans for The Banks. The project is a nearly $1 billion office, shopping and residential development on the Ohio River downtown, and it is being subsidized with city, state and federal funds.

But the Enquirer sniped that Quall's is opposing The Banks plan out of a "bruised ego." That remark is simply an inaccurate -- and mean-spirited -- reflection of her concerns. Qualls has questions rooted in economic, environmental and financial areas.

Qualls was mayor when the project on 18 acres between the football and baseball stadiums was conceived in the mid-1990s. It was supposed to be mixed use, with residential and shopping and dining etc., along with offices to enliven a fading downtown. Now the new plans are heavier on offices and Qualls is wondering if it will cannibalize the existing business district. The difficult real estate market, coupled with the Midwest's lousy economic climate, has made it tough to lease space in the central city where some 2.2 million square feet of office space already sits vacant. Qualls says that the tax-supported public subsidies that go into The Banks will harm investors who put money into downtown and must charge market rates that don't reflect government aid. Qualls isn't on the same page as the Enquirer's favorites, so she was snubbed:

"Smart, capable and experienced, former mayor Qualls knows policy inside-out as she demonstrated political savvy during her years on council. Just appointed to take Tarbell's place (Jim Tarbell, who resigned), she's running on a platform of helping to increase the city's tax base and grow its middle class. But in rejoining council after years away, she may be in a bit of a time warp. We find her recent efforts to undermine The Banks project particularly distressing. Her chief objections seem to be that the plan under consideration now differs from one she helped develop a decade ago. This is the city's most important development project. Opposing it on the the basis of a bruised ego is not acceptable."

Note: Image from adblogarabia.com

Cincinnati's Ex-Mayor Roxanne Qualls: Council Candidate Delivers A Boffo Speech

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Former Cincinnati Mayor Roxanne Qualls is a Democrat running as a third party candidate for City Council, and she appears to have little patience for those who want to debate whether global climate change is occurring.

"It's a little bit like two people standing in a burning building and discussing who started the fire and not getting out of the burning building. We've got to get out of the burning building."

Qualls delivered the line in a speech earlier this month. She focused on urban development and warming. She clearly explained how the issues are linked and critical to Ohio's future. You can listen to her presentation by clicking the link to the Covington Rotary Club. Her description about the impact of climate change and how it can be managed come slightly past the halfway mark in the download. Qualls believes the key is by creating a "green infrastructure" -- one example, streets that don't absorb heat from the sun's rays.

Qualls ran for Congress in Oh-01 in the late 1990s and lost to GOP. Rep. Steve Chabot. Although she is seeking a City Council seat this fall as a member of the Charter Committee -- an independent group that is not affiliated with Republicans or Democrats -- she is a Democrat. Proof arrived in the mail this week. Qualls was listed among a group raising funds for Hamilton County Municipal Court Judge Nadine Allen -- a Democrat seeking reelection to the bench. Democratic Mayor Mark Mallory's father, William, is on the list, too.

Former Dem Mayor Of Cincy: She's Signing On With 3rd Party To Run For Council

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Former Cincinnati Mayor Roxanne Qualls is in line to take an appointment for a City Council seat held by a local third party movement, the Charter Committee, and is going to run for election this fall under its banner. Qualls has been a Democrat and served from 1993 until 1999 as mayor. She was the Democratic Party's nominee for Ohio's 1st Congressional District in the 1990s, but lost to Republican U.S. Rep. Steve Chabot in a close race.

[UPDATE -- The Cincinnati Enquirer has more information posted about Qualls' political reentry.]

Information about the Charter Committee is here. It was formed in the 1920s during the days of corrupt political bosses and operates solely within the City of Cincinnati, where its primary legacy has been dedication to the city manager form of government.

Qualls has been heading a university-affiliated think tank in Northern Kentucky since 2005. She was a City Hall aide in the 1980s, then moved on to direct Cincinnati Citizen Action and its Toxic Action Project. Her return to City Hall as a member of the Charter Committee is a significant jolt to the city's political landscape.

She is replacing Charter's Vice Mayor Jim Tarbell, who is resigning before the end of his term and will leave office on Sept. 3. Tarbell has been elected four times, but cannot seek reelection this year because Cincinnati has term limits.