A high school student was among 200 or so people at a rally Monday in Canton to demand the ouster of Cherokee County School Board member Kelly Marlow. Marlow recently surrendered on felony accusations of lying to authorities via a statement in which she claimed the superintendent tried to run down her and two colleagues with his vehicle.
Taylor Poole, a Woodstock High sophomore, was concerned that Marlow’s actions would cause a loss of school accreditation. She expressed sentiments any caring citizen could give credence to.
“As an elected official, I expect Ms. Marlow to be a role model,” she said. “And this behavior is unacceptable.”
Poole could have been talking about the alleged antics of too many other elected officials in quite a few metro Atlanta communities. Scandals and dysfunction currently seem in abundant supply when it comes to our public servants, even if most of them do their jobs without notoriety. Such instances are nothing new, as the other writers on this page point out. Still, we deserve better.
In 2011, a grand jury found that Gwinnett County commissioners overpaid well-connected developers by millions of dollars on land deals. Gwinnett commissioner Shirley Lasseter received a 33-month prison term for accepting $36,500 in bribes for her vote on a proposed real estate development. The Atlanta Public Schools CRCT test-cheating scandal led to the indictment of former Superintendent Beverly Hall, accused of leading a corrupt school system and using students’ inflated test scores to earn bonuses. She’s pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Now it’s DeKalb County’s turn. A 15-count indictment accuses CEO Burrell Ellis of strong-arming three vendors who work for the county into donating to his re-election campaign. Ellis says he’s innocent and will fight the accusations.
Last week, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that at least two more companies have hired attorneys or contacted the DeKalb County District Attorney’s office with similar complaints against the CEO. On Friday, this newspaper reported that two county officials said Ellis directed staff members to compile a vendor’s list of contract winners with the county. The indictment alleges that Ellis used the lists to solicit campaign contributions. A panel appointed by Gov. Nathan Deal will determine whether Ellis stays on the job, while the judicial system will determine his guilt or innocence.
Regardless of the outcome, one thing’s certain: Our public trust — already frayed by skepticism, cynicism and general indifference about government, its purpose and those in office — will suffer yet another substantial blow.
The damage occurs even as most all politicians perform their duties without running afoul of the law. Others bravely challenge the system to change entrenched ways. A worthy example occurred when some lawmakers bucked Gold Dome culture to press for ethics reform.
We give elected officials the reins to government in our cities and counties. The public entrusts them to render decisions, debate issues and exhibit behaviors aligned with the community’s greater good. In essence, they have our confidence, placed in their hands by ballot.
Too often, that authority and trust are abused. Ego, power trips, vendettas and greed can trump moral obligations, derailing virtuous public service.
When lapses in moral truth, wisdom and leadership take hold, the damage is hard to undo.
We, the betrayed taxpayers, suffer.
And that’s unacceptable.
