Two voter fraud cases going to DA

Knox County’s election administrator says he’s identified two potential voter fraud cases from last week’s election.

Cliff Rodgers told 10News on Monday night he’s turning the cases over to Knox County District Attorney General Charme Allen.

It’ll be up to Allen to see if she wants to press charges thru a grand jury.

"I leave it up to the DA as to what they want to do," he said. "When I see an apparent violation of the law, I'm not sitting on it. I consider it voting fraud."

In one case, Rodgers said, a woman admitted she’d voted when she was a convicted felon, which is against the law. The woman told Rodgers on the phone she'd been convicted of a felony more than 20 years ago, but didn't think that was relevant to her voting in 2016.

Under Tennessee law, however, it's relevant.

In another case, Rodgers said a man voted in Knox County even though he’s lived in Loudon County more than a year. The man's wife acknowledged they lived in Lenoir City; the husband, however, was in the voting booth casting his vote at the time.

Under state law, you are required to vote in your county of residency.

Rodgers did not disclose the names of the two voters.

Such potential violations are felonies in Rodgers' view. Rodgers said he's turned over other potential fraud cases, although he didn't recall having one come up in the August election.

"Any time I get them I turn them over," he said.

Fourth ex-Knox Co. Trustee worker pleads guilty to felony theft

More than four years after surrendering to authorities, a former Knox County Trustee’s Office employee accused of stealing thousands in taxpayer dollars pleaded guilty to felony theft.

Rhonda Jan Thomas, whose trial was set for Monday, was initially charged with two counts of theft between $10,000 and $60,000, which prosecutors say happened between Aug. 1, 2008 and Jan. 30, 2009.

On Monday, she pleaded to one count and paid the full amount of restitution - $18,000.
She faces a Jan. 12 hearing to determining the length and manner of her sentence.

"We are very pleased that Ms. Thomas submitted to the charged offense and that the full amount of restitution has been returned to the taxpayers without the expense of a jury trial," District Attorney General Charme Allen said.

Knox County prosecutors say that because she has a clean record prior to her April 2012 arrest, they expect her attorney to ask for diversion, which – if she say out of trouble – would allow the judge to wipe her record clean.

Prosecutors are expected to oppose such a move.

In the meantime, the state Department of Corrections will conduct a pre-sentencing investigation on
Thomas. When that’s complete, prosecutors in the Knox County District Attorney General’s Office will determine whether to seek prison time for her.

Thomas, 47, was arrested a day after former Knox County Trustee Mike Lowe and several of his employees were. She and Johnny Haun – another employee who turned himself in – worked together but not in conjunction with Lowe.

The Trustee’s Office for years was dogged with controversy and rumors of theft and political patronage. The accusations culminated in late April 2012 when a grand jury that met in secret indicted Lowe and a number of his former co-workers on multiple felony theft charges.

Named were so-called “ghost Employees” Ray Mubarak and Delbert Morgan, who each were accused to getting paid for doing little or no work.

The charges against Lowe, Mubarak and Morgan stem from a state and local investigation that launched roughly six years ago and covered a span from 2004 through 2008.

Lowe and Muburak, an office clerk, each received a year in jail. Morgan, a field auditor, got 30 days and was ordered to pay back $200,000.

Lowe pleaded guilty to two counts of felony theft in March 2015 and was sentenced to 10 years of supervised probation, one year in jail and ordered him to pay restitution of $200,000 to Knox County.
Lowe served about six months since he received credit for good behavior.

In addition Johnny Haun and Rhonda Jan Thomas also faced theft charges, but officials said those two worked in conjunction with each other but independent from Lowe, Mubarak and Morgan.

Haun has a Nov. 30 plea deadline. His trial is set for next February.

Knox DA unveils 'citizens academy'

The Knox County District Attorney General's Office will create a "citizens academy."

DA Charme Allen called it "the first of its kind in the State of Tennessee."

According to a news release, the six-week course gives folks an opportunity to learn more about the office and what it is like to represent the State and argue a criminal case as a prosecutor.

Participants will engage with prosecutors discussing a range of topics, including the role of the prosecutor in the criminal justice system, the opiate epidemic, gang prosecution, human trafficking, and other emerging trends.

Additionally, participants get the chance to take on the role of DA while prosecuting a mock case in the court system.

“During my time in office, I have focused on educating the public about how prosecutors work to protect the citizens of Knox County,” Allen said in a statement. “The Citizens Academy will further the goal of education in an interactive and informative way.”

The program will be held Tuesdays from 6-8 p.m. from Sept. 6 through Oct. 11 at the City County Building.

Applicants must be at least 18 years old, live or work in Knox County, and undergo
a background check, including a criminal history check.

Applications can be found at www.knoxcounty.org/dag. Completed applications may be emailed to
jackie.myers@knoxcounty.org, faxed to 865-215-4253.

The deadline to submit an application is July 31.

DA establishes attendance reward pilot-program at Maynard Elementary

Charme Allen

Knox County District Attorney General Charme Allen is pleased to announce a new Attendance Reward Program where the DA’s Office Community Affairs Unit will provide new bicycles and helmets for students at Maynard Elementary School who have achieved perfect attendance for the fall or spring semesters of the 2015-2016 school year.

Allen will announce the program to students at an assembly at Maynard Elementary on Friday, August 21, at 1:45 P.M.

As part of the Truancy Reduction Initiative, the new Attendance Reward Program will hopefully create an incentive for students and give them a goal to reach throughout the year.

Evidence shows that students who regularly come to class and complete their education are far less likely to enter the criminal justice system. Missing even one day of school can be detrimental to students. This new program rewards students who go above and beyond the normal attendance policy.

The pilot program will be limited to students at Maynard Elementary but will hopefully expand to other schools in the future.

Anyone interested in donating to the Attendance Reward Program can contact Community Affairs Coordinator Jackie Myers at 865-215-2515 or jackie.myers@knoxcounty.org.

Upon taking office a year ago, General Allen launched the Community Affairs Unit in an effort to put into action the second prong of her dual goal of being “Tough on Crime, Smart on Prevention.” This innovative Unit provides a direct link between the District Attorney’s Office and the citizens of Knox County through involvement in community outreach, education of the public, and partnership with other agencies.

This Unit serves to foster communication between the District Attorney General’s Office and the Knoxville community, and ultimately, it serves to prevent crime at its source.