Dade Sheriff Asks GBI to Review Allegations of Improper Credit Card Use by County Commissioner

The Dade County Sheriff’s Office says it is reviewing allegations of improper county credit card use by a Dade County commissioner and has asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to help determine how the matter should move forward.

Sheriff Ray Cross says his office has received calls from multiple citizens following allegations raised during the September 3 Dade County Commission meeting.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, concerned citizens have also provided investigators with documents and receipts obtained through the Georgia Open Records Act.

The Sheriff’s Office says those records are currently being reviewed and that it remains in communication with the GBI regarding the findings.

Because of the nature of the complaints, Cross has asked the GBI to make a determination regarding how to proceed as the investigation develops.

The Sheriff’s Office says no additional information will be released at this time.

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Credit Card Spending Questioned During Commission Meeting

Watch the full meeting below

Questions surrounding Dade County government credit card spending took center stage during public participation at September’s Board of Commissioners meeting, as two residents raised concerns about receipts, travel expenses and oversight of county-issued cards.

The concerns included specific allegations involving expenses connected to Commissioner Melissa Bradford’s July trip to the National Association of Counties conference in New Orleans, as well as broader questions about credit card use throughout county government.

Bradford was not present during the September 3 meeting. County Executive Don Townsend told those attending that Bradford was at the emergency room with her mother, who had experienced a health crisis earlier that day.

Susan Talbot was the first to address commissioners, telling the board she had concerns about the county’s handling and documentation of credit card spending.

Talbot said her review indicated there are at least 36 county credit cards issued among commission departments and elected officials. She also alleged that many cards appeared to lack signed departmental spending agreements establishing responsibility for their use.

Talbot told commissioners she submitted an open-records request on August 24 seeking documentation involving 23 transactions.

Among the transactions she questioned were restaurant purchases in Alabama, Savannah and Chattanooga, along with purchases at Lowe’s in Kimball and Sam’s Club in Chattanooga.

She referenced two Lowe’s purchases in Kimball — $2,554.84 and $1,504.52 — which she described as reportedly involving building supplies, along with other restaurant, retail and Sam’s Club transactions.

Talbot emphasized that she was not alleging the transaction was improper, but said taxpayers should be able to see what was purchased, who it was for and the governmental purpose of the expenditure.

Again, Talbot stopped short of saying the expenditures were improper.

She called for itemized receipts and documentation showing the public purpose behind expenditures made with county cards.

A second resident, Joy York, focused much of her public comment on credit card transactions associated with Bradford’s attendance at the National Association of Counties conference in New Orleans from July 17 through July 20.

York said she had reviewed 19 months of county credit card statements.

According to York, records associated with Bradford’s conference trip showed a scholarship reimbursement request totaling $3,029.62, with reimbursement capped at $3,000. She said that request covered round-trip mileage, conference registration and hotel accommodations.

York told commissioners that the food and beverage spending she identified for the four-day conference totaled $1,181.52, along with another $206.58 in Uber charges.

York broadened her concerns beyond the New Orleans trip.

York called for an independent external forensic accounting review of county credit card spending over the past two years and also requested a review covering Bradford’s tenure.

She additionally called for Bradford’s county-issued credit card to be revoked.

Thursday night’s comments raise questions but do not establish that Bradford or any other county official violated county policy or state law.