DeKalb sheriff candidate questions jail commissary funding

DeKalb sheriff candidate Michael Williams is raising questions about millions of dollars that flow through the commissary at the county jail.

Williams said Monday that Sheriff Jeff Mann hasn't been transparent about the commissary, which sells food and supplies to inmates.

He said official county audits haven’t been able to determine details about how the store is operated, and he said figures reported in outside audits don’t seem to add up.

“Taxpayers deserve to know where the money is going that’s being generated by the commissary,” Williams said during a press conference. “The buck should stop at the sheriff.”

Mann said Williams’ accusations amount to “political silliness” during the election season. Mann said annual independent audits have accounted for the commissary’s funding over the last decade.

“Each audit has reported a proper accounting of those funds,” Mann said in a statement. “It is evident that the person making these accusations has no understanding of these processes.”

Williams, an investigator for DeKalb District Attorney Robert James, distributed copies of the independent outside audits that he said raise suspicions about the commissary.

The documents indicate that inmates spent more than $1.3 million on commissary purchases in 2014. Williams said the county’s auditors should be provided more information.

“Why not open the books up to the DeKalb County audit division?” Williams asked. “There’s no work product to derive the numbers they come up with.”

Williams said his campaign uncovered issues with the commissary’s finances separately from his job in the district attorney’s office. He reported his findings to James.

James told Williams he will look into the commissary if he discovers any evidence of a crime, said spokesman Marcus Garner.

Besides Williams and Mann, the other candidates for sheriff are Geraldine Champion, a retired detective; Harold Dennis, a former DeKalb Reserve lieutenant; Ted Golden, a retired Drug Enforcement Administration agent; and Kyle Jones, a business owner.