Dills, who served as city clerk since 1996, was charged Friday with one count of felony theft after allegedly cutting 70 checks for herself during 2006 and stealing $56,000 in city money. According to Cross, Dills was only supposed to receive 27 checks, including 26 paychecks and one bonus.
The long-time clerk was booked into the Madison County Jail Friday and released on a $55,050 property bond posted by her parents.
Auditors discovered the theft while reviewing the city’s 2006 financial records. And investigators suspect that the amount of stolen money will increase as the city’s records for 2007 and 2008 are reviewed.
“We’ve got to list the checks, amounts, dates and have them typed up for the GBI,” said Cross, motioning to a big box of financial records behind the council table during Monday night’s meeting.
Cross said the council will also need to review city court records, adding that fine money may have been stolen.
“We’ll have to go through the city municipal court and see if there is any money missing,” Cross told the council. “We’ll have to list the date, amount paid in cash and amount deposited,” he said.
Council member Junne Temple said she doesn’t feel confident that the thefts started in 2006.
“How do we know she didn’t do it before (2006)?” asked Temple.
Cross said the city could review old records, too.
“We’ve got 2005 records upstairs,” said Cross. “We can pull them out and check them.”
City attorney Victor Johnson said Dills was bonded, or insured, as a city employee, meaning the city may be able to recover lost funds — up to $500,000 — through its bonding agency.
Cross sent Dills a letter Friday, informing her that she had been suspended for 30 days for “misconduct and inefficiency in performing assigned duties.”
On Monday, the council unanimously agreed to fire Dills, effective immediately.
“I really don’t see that we have much choice,” said councilman Roger Watson. “As bad as I hate it, we don’t have much choice.”
The Danielsville council has long complained that its auditing firm, Hawkins and McNair, out of Winder, has dragged its feet on completing city audits.
Cross said Monday that the auditing firm was not entirely to blame for the delinquent audits.
“It wasn’t all Jerry Hawkins’ fault,” said Cross. “She (Dills) wasn’t getting him the information he needed.”
However, Temple and Watson both said the auditors should have approached the council about problems they had with Dills.
“If he wasn’t getting what he needed, he should have let us know,” said Watson.
The council agreed Monday change auditing firms, approving Vance and Associates to perform its 2007 audit. The group also approved former Madison County human resources director Connie Riley as a temporary city clerk at $10 an hour for 40 hours a week through Dec. 31.
the time he made that statement! He also, along with many
other people in Danielsville thought Michelle was a good person
and I'm sure his comment was that he hated it for all involved as well as the people of the county. He knew the only thing to do was to let her go. We all tend to judge people for their comments as well as their actions. Madison County is a great place to live and to raise children, we need to focus on the good and not the bad stuff all day long. Give these people a break!
POST THIS IS SOMEONES MOTHER,WIFE,FRIEND AND DAUGHTER
AND WE SHOULD PRAY FOR HER AND HER FAMILY
WE DON'T LIVE IN A PERFECT WORLD AND I'M SURE THERE IS
ALOT OF PEOPLE POSTING MEAN THINGS AND THEY PROBABLY
HAVE DONE OR HAS FAMILY THAT HAS DONE SOMETHING ILLEGAL
BUT JUST HASN'T GOTTEN CAUGHT
GOD BLESS HER AND HER FAMILY
has stolen $56000 in one year and still counting?
I havent and dont know ANYONE who has
but I agree she does need prayers for her and her
family
Mean things are said when hardworking tax payers
who are honest see CRAP like this going on !
I know it's painful to watch someone you know and like, or even love, have her choices exposed for the world to see...and comment on.
But I do not agree that everyone has done something illegal but just hasn't gotten caught. And that does not excuse the point of the article: Ms Dills DID do something illegal and WAS caught. Breaking the law (allegedly) is wrong. No matter who else is doing it and hasn't been caught. Hopefully they will be.
A person in the public eye in a taxpayer supported job deliberately chose to violate our trust, repeatedly, and her choice is exposed now and we are talking about it. That is called "consequence."
I don't judge, though, that is for God to do. But we can observe behavior and evaluate it. And that is what we are doing on this forum.
Yes, God bless her, pray for her, those things are important. Truly. We are all sinners. But also as important is public discussion, evaluation, and through this public process ensuring the (alleged) lawbreaker has her due consequences, and then hopefully, we get some closure.
Personally, I need to pray to take the resentment out of my mind and soul due to the show off attitude this woman has due to fraudlent funds obtained by stealing.