An ongoing issue with the Cayuga County District Attorney's investigator may soon be laid to rest.
Legislators have been trying to work with the DA's office for the past four months to resolve a salary issue with full-time investigator Stephen McLoud, a retired undersheriff formerly employed by the county.
By state law, McLoud, who receives a pension from the county, cannot earn more than $30,000 in the investigator position even though the position actually pays $43,000 plus fringe benefits.
When McLoud was hired, District Attorney Jon Budelmann filed a waiver with the state to allow him to collect the full salary. But the waiver was denied and when McLoud maxed out his $30,000 salary last October, Budelmann asked the Legislature to grant an unpaid leave of absence.
Although the leave of absence request was denied, McLoud did not report to work for five weeks, said legislator David Axton, R-Mentz. As a result, investigators from the sheriff's department as well as state police assisted the DA's office during the five-week leave.
During Tuesday's Ways and Means Committee meeting, Axton addressed the problem and indicated he would make a motion at next week's monthly Legislature meeting to abolish the DA's investigator position and create another full-time investigator position at the sheriff's office that would report to the district attorney.
“Our issue was, we're going to have to deal with this again and it's just not fair to anybody, it's not fair to the taxpayers to be depending on having an investigator that can't fulfill his job obligation and be a full-time investigator,” Axton said. “It's been four months, it hasn't been taken care of.”
If approved, the new position will be budgeted within the sheriff's office but the investigator would report to and be directed by Budelmann, said County Attorney Frederick Westphal.
The county asked Budelmann to find an investigator who will meet the job description and be able to work full-time for the $43,000.
Since the issue has not been resolved yet, Axton said he will make the motion next Tuesday so the county can take care of this and move on to other important problems.
McLoud said he did not know his salary was capped at $30,000 when he took the position but declined further comment.
Getting rid of the investigator position would lessen the district attorney's office ability to prosecute criminals, Budelmann said, adding that the county would be cutting his staff at a time when the DA's office has an extremely high number of cases.
Budelmann also questioned the reasoning behind moving the position to the sheriff's office.
“Why would you put an investigator working for me in the sheriff's office?” Budelmann asked. “It doesn't make any sense. It's clearly political maneuvering.”
When Budelmann approached the county last year, legislators denied the leave of absence as well as an emergency resolution to hire a temporary investigator, he said.
Though he agreed that the county needs a permanent solution, Budelmann said that putting an investigator at the sheriff's office is not the answer, especially if the DA's office ever had to investigate a matter within the sheriff's department.
“It's very important for the independence of the office,” he said. “If we had to interview someone at the sheriff's department as an independent agency, I could do that.”
But when someone works within the department, it could potentially be a conflict of interest, he said.
Budelmann added that he has not been contacted by Axton in more than a month regarding the ongoing matter.
“I welcome him to sit down. From where I'm sitting, pulling it from my office and putting it anywhere else doesn't make any sense in saving money, it's clearly a political move,” he said.
Legislator Patrick Mahunik, D-Auburn, is among those in support of Axton's resolution.
During the few months the district attorney's office was without an investigator, other investigators picked up the slack and continued investigations for the county, he said. Mahunik believes this issue needs to get resolved as quickly as possible.
“I don't want to be in another position ... in the fall where we don't have a person in place to do the job,” he said. “If the DA's office can't get their people in place to do the job, then maybe we need to look somewhere else to have it done.”
Staff writer Gitana Mirochnik can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 237 or gitana.mirochnik@lee.net
By state law, McLoud, who receives a pension from the county, cannot earn more than $30,000 in the investigator position even though the position actually pays $43,000 plus fringe benefits.
When McLoud was hired, District Attorney Jon Budelmann filed a waiver with the state to allow him to collect the full salary. But the waiver was denied and when McLoud maxed out his $30,000 salary last October, Budelmann asked the Legislature to grant an unpaid leave of absence.
Although the leave of absence request was denied, McLoud did not report to work for five weeks, said legislator David Axton, R-Mentz. As a result, investigators from the sheriff's department as well as state police assisted the DA's office during the five-week leave.
During Tuesday's Ways and Means Committee meeting, Axton addressed the problem and indicated he would make a motion at next week's monthly Legislature meeting to abolish the DA's investigator position and create another full-time investigator position at the sheriff's office that would report to the district attorney.
“Our issue was, we're going to have to deal with this again and it's just not fair to anybody, it's not fair to the taxpayers to be depending on having an investigator that can't fulfill his job obligation and be a full-time investigator,” Axton said. “It's been four months, it hasn't been taken care of.”
If approved, the new position will be budgeted within the sheriff's office but the investigator would report to and be directed by Budelmann, said County Attorney Frederick Westphal.
The county asked Budelmann to find an investigator who will meet the job description and be able to work full-time for the $43,000.
Since the issue has not been resolved yet, Axton said he will make the motion next Tuesday so the county can take care of this and move on to other important problems.
McLoud said he did not know his salary was capped at $30,000 when he took the position but declined further comment.
Getting rid of the investigator position would lessen the district attorney's office ability to prosecute criminals, Budelmann said, adding that the county would be cutting his staff at a time when the DA's office has an extremely high number of cases.
Budelmann also questioned the reasoning behind moving the position to the sheriff's office.
“Why would you put an investigator working for me in the sheriff's office?” Budelmann asked. “It doesn't make any sense. It's clearly political maneuvering.”
When Budelmann approached the county last year, legislators denied the leave of absence as well as an emergency resolution to hire a temporary investigator, he said.
Though he agreed that the county needs a permanent solution, Budelmann said that putting an investigator at the sheriff's office is not the answer, especially if the DA's office ever had to investigate a matter within the sheriff's department.
“It's very important for the independence of the office,” he said. “If we had to interview someone at the sheriff's department as an independent agency, I could do that.”
But when someone works within the department, it could potentially be a conflict of interest, he said.
Budelmann added that he has not been contacted by Axton in more than a month regarding the ongoing matter.
“I welcome him to sit down. From where I'm sitting, pulling it from my office and putting it anywhere else doesn't make any sense in saving money, it's clearly a political move,” he said.
Legislator Patrick Mahunik, D-Auburn, is among those in support of Axton's resolution.
During the few months the district attorney's office was without an investigator, other investigators picked up the slack and continued investigations for the county, he said. Mahunik believes this issue needs to get resolved as quickly as possible.
“I don't want to be in another position ... in the fall where we don't have a person in place to do the job,” he said. “If the DA's office can't get their people in place to do the job, then maybe we need to look somewhere else to have it done.”
Staff writer Gitana Mirochnik can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 237 or gitana.mirochnik@lee.net
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spatrx wrote on Feb 20, 2009 8:20 AM:
McLoud said he did not know his salary was capped at $30,000 when he took the position but declined further comment.
Ignorence of the law is no excuse. "
scouty wrote on Feb 19, 2009 5:27 PM:
Buddman should not let McLoud go, he is a top notch impartial investigator and most certainly deserves his 25 year county pension.
He was Rob Outhous's undersheriff, you think the sheriff is'nt a politician first.
You people and your petty nickel and dime poop, most probably have never held a real job. "
FS II wrote on Feb 19, 2009 8:38 AM:
spatrx wrote on Feb 19, 2009 7:23 AM:
daydreamer wrote on Feb 19, 2009 7:02 AM:
stevedallas wrote on Feb 19, 2009 6:29 AM:
rocky-g wrote on Feb 19, 2009 1:42 AM: