Three weeks later, no ethics investigation yet

AJC WATCHDOG

As part of our work to hold government officials accountable to the public, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has closely followed activities at the state ethics commission. Recent stories, based on court documents and interviews, have reported accusations that the executive secretary of the commission, Holly LaBerge, improperly intervened in a case involving Gov. Nathan Deal. On Sept. 30, the commission voted to ask Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens to appoint an investigator to probe the agency. Today’s story reports that three weeks later, the commission still hasn’t formally requested the probe, causing some observers to say the slow pace of progress could cause the public to lose confidence in the commission.

Three weeks after the state ethics commission voted to ask for a special investigation of problems at the agency, no investigator has been appointed because none has officially been requested.

The commission voted Sept. 30 to request what’s known as a special assistant attorney general — typically a private lawyer temporarily given state investigative powers — to conduct an independent probe of the agency. But before Attorney General Sam Olens can do so, the commission must make a formal request. That hasn’t happened, Olens’ office confirmed Monday.

Why not? Good question, say ethics observers who are concerned that the commission’s deliberate pace raises doubts about its commitment to finding the truth.

AJC WATCHDOG

The commission is vetting candidates to investigate the agency and is also “reviewing and determining the scope and nature of the investigation,” commission vice chairwoman Hillary S. Stringfellow said in a statement.

“Numerous candidates have been and continue to be reviewed and considered to serve in this role,” the statement said. “At such time as the commission has reached a final decision, such decision will be announced.”

Days after the Sept. 30 meeting, commission Chairman Kevin Abernethy told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the board was “still working through the precise parameters” of the investigation.

The decision to seek an independent probe came after the AJC reported that current and former commission employees have alleged in sworn testimony that commission executive director Holly LaBerge ordered documents removed from the case file of the commission’s investigation into Gov. Nathan Deal’s 2010 campaign for governor. They also claim LaBerge bragged that Deal “owed” her for scuttling the case against him.

Deal, who was accused of misusing campaign cash and accepting contributions over the legal limit, was cleared of major charges in 2012 and ordered to pay $3,350 in administrative fees for “technical defects.” The commission’s staff attorney had recommended a fine of $70,000.

The governor has said he received no special treatment in the handling of the case, and LaBerge has testified that she did not interfere in it.

The longer the commission waits to act on its promise for an investigation, the more credibility it loses, said William Perry, executive director of the watchdog group Common Cause Georgia.

“It does not bode well that it is taking the commission this long to take the next step,” Perry said. “It’s like they are saying ‘We’ll decide how this independent investigation will be conducted, how much we are willing to pay for it, and we’ll take our time doing it’ — that doesn’t do much to instill public confidence in this process.”

Part of the decision in requesting the investigator is how wide a probe to request. While Olens will hire and pay the outside attorney, the cost will be passed on to the commission. The agency for years has been plagued by tight budgets, although more money has been added in the past few years.

Kerwin Swint, the interim chairman of the department of political science and international affairs at Kennesaw State University, said the commission’s window is closing.

“We’re almost into an election year,” said Swint, a member of the Common Cause Georgia board and a former GOP activist. “I can understand three weeks, but if you give it a month and there’s been no major efforts, I would say time’s up or it’s time for some action.”