The former leader of Atlanta Public Schools’ technology department pleaded guilty Wednesday to taking $60,000 in bribes in exchange for awarding more than $735,000 in school computing contracts.
Jerome Oberlton, 48, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors that calls for him to serve 3 1/2 years in prison and refund Atlanta Public Schools the $735,000 it paid to the contractor, Computech Corporation, between March and December in 2007.
Oberlton, who worked as the city school system’s chief information officer from 2004 to 2007, will remain free on bond until he’s officially sentenced by U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash on March 24.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kurt Erskine said in court that Oberlton planned with his Kennesaw neighbor, information technology consultant Mahendra Patel, to get kickback payments.
“Rather than conduct a transparent and fair bidding process, Oberlton instead colluded with the winning bidder, Computech, and, ultimately, ensured that Computech received the contract award in exchange for kickbacks,” according to a motion filed Dec. 17 by the U.S. attorney’s office.
Oberlton and his attorneys declined to comment after the hearing. Computech Corporation, based in Detroit, didn’t respond to an email seeking comment.
Patel pleaded guilty to conspiracy in August, and he hasn’t yet been sentenced. Federal sentencing guidelines recommend Patel receive a prison term of 27 to 33 months.
Oberlton and Patel launched their scheme in April 2006, when they traveled to Detroit to meet with unnamed co-conspirators, according to the plea agreement.
In January 2007, Oberlton notified Computech it had been awarded a contract to centralize the school system’s computer information so it could be easily accessed by education employees.
Three payments were made to Oberlton’s company, Global Technology Services, the plea agreement said. Invoices from Global Technology Services said money was owed for consulting services, but no consulting work was provided.
“The invoice was merely a cover for the kickbacks,” the plea deal said.
Oberlton resigned from Atlanta Public Schools in 2007 after losing favor with then-Superintendent Beverly Hall, who now faces criminal charges herself for her alleged role in the school system’s cheating scandal. An indictment accuses her of leading a conspiracy to inflate students’ test scores to meet academic targets in 2009.
Hall questioned Oberlton's judgment in accepting gifts from vendors in violation of school policy, according to court documents filed by prosecutors. The gifts included golfing, meals, chocolates and a trip to an executive center.
“I am concerned that your receipt of gifts, etc., continued even after the Senior Cabinet was trained regarding ethics and conflicts of interest,” Hall wrote in an Aug. 16, 2007 letter to Oberlton, which prosecutors included as an exhibit. His lack of knowledge of school system policy was “not a defense if the matter is ever audited or investigated,” the letter said.
After leaving APS, Oberlton held a private sector job before joining Baltimore City Public Schools in 2011 and the Dallas Independent School District in January, where he worked as chief of staff. He resigned last May when he told the Dallas superintendent he expected to be indicted.
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