Strickland Was For Thomas Charles, Before He Was Against Him

 

 

“Scurrying to stamp out a smoldering scandal before it becomes a wildfire, Gov. Ted Strickland and an attorney for his top public-safety administrator questioned the veracity of an investigation into an aborted sting at the Governor's Residence.” (Columbus Dispatch, 5/4/10)

 

“Yesterday, Strickland strongly rejected allegations in a report by state Inspector General Thomas P. Charles that Public Safety Director Cathy Collins-Taylor lied under oath, saying ‘she's done nothing wrong.’” (Columbus Dispatch, 5/4/10)

 

“… Collins-Taylor's attorney, Charles ’Rocky’ Saxbe, went a step further, calling Charles' report so ‘scurrilous’ and containing such ‘fabrications’ to arrive at a predetermined outcome that Charles' office is the one that should be investigated.” (Columbus Dispatch, 5/4/10)

 

“Saxbe portrayed Charles as bitter about the administration's handling of State Highway Patrol matters, charging he used the Governor's Residence investigation as ‘a platform for him to pursue a personal agenda.’” (Columbus Dispatch, 5/4/10)

 

The [Ohio Senate] hearings have focused on an event in January, when prison officials intercepted a letter from an inmate to his wife asking her to plant a "six pack" outside the governor's mansion where he would be working under a work-release program. … The patrol wanted to set up a sting at the mansion to nab the woman, but Collins-Taylor and Dicken scrubbed the plan, citing concern for the governor's safety. … The patrol has since closed that investigation. But Ohio Inspector General Tom Charles, a former state trooper, is still looking into it. Charles' wife, patrol Capt. Brigette Charles, is one of 11 people who interviewed for the superintendent's post in November. Dicken won the job. Strickland reappointed Charles, who had also served under the Republican Taft administration, as inspector general and said he believes Charles will conduct a fair investigation. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 4/6/10)

 

Collins-Taylor in January responded to an earlier Charles investigation with a scathing letter questioning the integrity of that probe. But in an interview this month with The Plain Dealer, Strickland noted that he reappointed Charles in 2007, carrying him over from the previous Republican administration. He said Charles could be impartial. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 4/30/10)

“Thomas [Charles] understands that integrity and accountability play critical roles in our state government,” Strickland said. “He has played an absolutely essential role in beginning the process of restoring Ohioans’ trust and faith in their government. I’m proud to ask him to continue his work.” (Governor Ted Strickland, Press Release, 1/23/07)

 

“Two Toledo Democrats, state Rep. Jeanine Perry and Sen. Teresa Fedor, were drafting a letter yesterday to Strickland urging him to reappoint Charles. ‘There is a lot of confidence in his ability and integrity, and we think it's really important to complete the investigations that are under way,’ Perry said.” (Columbus Dispatch, 11/15/06)

 

“Gov. Ted Strickland’s reappointment of Inspector General Tom Charles ensures continuity in the investigation into the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation’s investment practices, federal and state prosecutors said yesterday. ‘Mr. Charles has done a marvelous job handling this case so far,’ said John Weglian, an assistant Lucas County prosecutor who handled the government’s case against former GOP fundraiser and coin dealer Tom Noe. ‘I expect that to continue.’ ‘Continuity is good for the ongoing investigation,’ said Greg White, who was appointed U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Ohio by President Bush in 2003. ‘We’re happy that it’s done.’” (Toledo Blade, 1/24/07)

 

“REAPPOINTMENT of Tom Charles as Ohio's inspector general by Gov. Ted Strickland only accentuates the obligation state and federal officials have to press ahead strongly with investigations of corruption at the Bureau of Workers' Compensation.” (Editorial, Toledo Blade, 1/25/07)

 

While there is merit to that argument, there doesn't appear to be any hard evidence that Mr. Charles has shied away from politically sensitive matters. In addition to Coingate, which snared Mr. Taft and several aides, he conducted an aggressive investigation in 2002-2003 that drained a political swamp at the Ohio Turnpike Commission. (Editorial, Toledo Blade, 1/25/07)

 

 

Gov. Ted Strickland said he has a few ideas about how to partner with faith-based organizations to help the needy but they don't include using politically connected contractors who buy TVs that don't work and selfserving academic studies. Strickland criticized how the Governor's Office on Faith-based and Community Initiatives was managed under the Taft administration. "This was like an ATM machine for some of the most politically right-wing organizations, Strickland told the Dayton Daily News on Friday. "I think that's unfortunate." … Strickland replaced staff in the faithbased office in January and began reviewing contracts and grant programs. Last week he asked state Inspector General Tom Charles to investigate and the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services to audit the office. (Dayton Daily News, 3/17/07)

 

Gov. Ted Strickland on Tuesday called for an investigation into reports by a former state worker that the wife of Columbus mayor Michael Coleman submitted time sheets that exaggerated the number of hours she worked for the state development department, a governor's spokesman said. … Strickland, a Democrat, has asked state Inspector General Tom Charles to help with an investigation by the development department into whether Coleman worked the hours she claimed, said spokesman Keith Dailey. (Associated Press, 5/9/07)

 

A 22-year-old intern was given the responsibility of safeguarding the personal information of thousands of state employees, a security procedure that ended up backfiring. The Social Security numbers and names of all 64,000 Ohio state employees were stolen earlier this week from a state agency intern, who accidentally left a backup computer storage device in his car that was supposed to be taken inside his home, Gov. Ted Strickland said Friday. … Strickland has asked Ohio Inspector General Tom Charles to get involved in the investigation. (Associated Press, 6/16/07)

 

State legislative leaders say they will bring in Ohio Inspector General Tom Charles next week to launch an independent investigation into allegations swirling around Attorney General Marc Dann. …

A spokesman for Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland said the state's top official is on board with bringing in Charles, a former longtime state trooper. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 5/10/08)

 

Gov. Ted Strickland and General Assembly leaders could have chosen anyone to lead an investigation into claims that former Attorney General Marc Dann mismanaged his office and allowed state resources to be misused. They chose Charles. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 5/18/08)

 

Strickland and legislative leaders said Dann's internal investigation wasn't enough, and they tapped Charles to do an independent review. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 5/18/08)

 

The resignation of Attorney General Marc Dann allows Ohio to begin repairing the damage from one of the most tragic and distasteful chapters in the history of state government. … Dann's departure was the most important development in this scandal but not necessarily the last. Gov. Ted Strickland was right to reassure Ohioans that the resignation won't stop an investigation by Ohio Inspector General Thomas P. Charles of the actions of Dann and his top employees. (Editorial, Columbus Dispatch, 5/15/08)

 

E-mails released by Strickland show Helen Jones-Kelley using her state-issued e-mail account to send names of potential contributors to the Obama campaign. Jones-Kelley is director of the state Department of Job and Family Services. … Strickland has asked State Inspector Tom Charles to include the political fundraising matter in his current investigation into the Wurzelbacher records search. (Associated Press, 11/8/08)

 

A report by the Ohio Inspector General's Office clears the Ohio Highway Patrol of any cover-up but offers a scathing critique of the delay in citing two police officers for driving their motorcycles close to 150 mph. Inspector General Thomas Charles said the inaction up and down the patrol's chain of command helped feed the public perception that the patrol was trying to protect its own. … The focus of the investigation, which started July 15 at the request of Gov. Ted Strickland, was two-fold: Whether the patrol tried to sweep the matter under the rug and what affect extensive media coverage had on their decision-making process. (Newark Advocate, 8/7/09)

 

 

[A] task force led by Ohio Inspector General Thomas P. Charles found that a former [Bureau of Worker’s Compensation] official arbitrarily cut premium rates of favored Ohio employers. … Marsha Ryan, a former American Electric Power executive chosen by Gov. Ted Strickland this year to lead the bureau, said Charles' findings proved what she thought -- that some past actions were motivated by politics. (Columbus Dispatch, 8/24/07)

 

Helen Jones-Kelley, Ohio Job and Family Services Department director, was suspended for one month without pay after a state Inspector General's report found she improperly authorized searches of databases and used her state e-mail account for political fundraising. On Thursday, Nov. 20, Gov. Ted Strickland said in a statement that the 57-year-old Clayton resident "has dedicated her life to helping the most vulnerable among us" but that he accepts Inspector General Tom Charles' judgment. (Dayton Daily News, 11/21/08)

 

The day after [Lottery Director Michael A.] Dolan received only warnings for a missing front license plate and for not wearing his seat belt, he dashed off a thank-you letter to State Highway Patrol Trooper James M. Baker -- and enclosed 100 promotional lottery tickets. Although Dolan called it a harmless gesture, Ohio Inspector General Thomas P. Charles and the lottery director's boss, Gov. Ted Strickland, saw things differently. Charles' office released a critical report yesterday that called Dolan's actions "lacking in sound judgment and improper." Strickland suspended the lottery's practice of giving out promotional tickets, although Dolan himself escaped punishment. (Columbus Dispatch, 4/1/09)