Local News
Local News

DeKalb CEO Lee May’s chief of staff quits

By Mark Niesse
Dec 23, 2015

Interim DeKalb CEO Lee May’s chief of staff, Edmond Richardson, is stepping down amid scrutiny over his involvement in steering county work to a friend.

Richardson has been on medical leave for nearly three months since The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Channel 2 Action News reported Oct. 1 that he funneled a youth outreach services contract to Jerry Clark, a former member of the DeKalb Zoning Board of Appeals who pleaded guilty to a bribery charge in February.

Clark submitted invoices totaling $24,500 under the contract, and he was later hired as a county employee at Richardson's direction, making $16,000 before he was fired in January when he informed his superiors he was under investigation.

Clark is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 20 for accepting $3,500 in bribes for a November 2012 vote to approve a nightclub’s zoning request.

ExplorePlease read the full story on MyAJC.com.

About the Author

Mark Niesse is an enterprise reporter and covers elections and Georgia government for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and is considered an expert on elections and voting. Before joining the AJC, he worked for The Associated Press in Atlanta, Honolulu and Montgomery, Alabama. He also reported for The Daily Report and The Santiago Times in Chile.

Follow Mark Niesse on twitter
More Stories

The Latest

Kelly Vinal walks through debris in her space at South River Arts Studio in DeKalb County on Friday, Nov. 14, 2025. The artist studio was damaged in a fire on Wednesday. (Natrice Miller/AJC)

Credit: Natrice Miller

Fire gutted a DeKalb art studio. Creatives are now picking up the pieces.

Churches, King Center hold food drives as SNAP delays linger

$980M Mega Millions winning ticket sold in Newnan

Featured

Prosecutor Skandalakis has previously suggested that pursuing criminal charges against President Donald Trump may not be feasible until after he leaves office in 2029. (Craig Hudson/Politico/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Credit: Bloomberg via Getty Images

Prosecutor takes helm of Georgia case against Trump. But will he move forward?

A veteran Georgia prosecutor will decide the fate of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' election interference case against Donald Trump and his allies.

With some solar power tax breaks expiring, Georgians rush to catch the sun

Georgia solar installers say they’re seeing a surge of customers trying to install rooftop solar systems before federal tax credits go away at the end of the year.

‘Automatic for the People’: Weaver D’s still bonds Athens as era nears end

After feeding everyone from R.E.M. to Brian Kemp, and coining a phrase that went global, Dexter Weaver is preparing to close his storied Athens soul food restaurant.