Story case ends in plea deal with state
Lou Marzeles
News Editor
Former Rural 7 fire department employee Linda Story accepted a plea agreement last Wednesday in her case prosecuted by the state attorney general's office for theft of Rural 7 funds. The agreement resulted in a court verdict of guilty of one count of attempted theft, a gross misdemeanor, and one count of theft, a misdemeanor.
Judge E. Thompson Reynolds' verdict and judgment sentenced Story to 365 days incarceration on count one, all of which are suspended; 90 days incarceration on count two, all of which are also suspended; 12 months of bench probation; and a suspended fine of $1,000. Her legal financial obligations to the court totaled $700 and are due to be paid by Dec. 1 of this year. Court costs do not include attorney fees.
In the agreement reached with the attorney general's office, Story entered an Alford plea, based on a landmark legal case, North Carolina versus Alford, in which a guilty plea is entered but without admission of guilt or wrongdoing.
In her Statement of Defendant on Plea of Guilty, filed at the time of her verdict on Wednesday, the terms of her agreement with the state attorney general are spelled out. "The prosecuting attorney will make the following recommendation to the judge," the statement begins, closely followed by: "No jail, no fine, no active probation; restitution, if any, as parties may agree or court shall order within 180 days."
"I plead guilty under North Carolina vs. Alford," her legal statement continues, "to resolve and terminate this prosecution. I am not admitting I committed a crime." Her statement does acknowledge that if the case went to trial, it is possible that a jury might convict her; that acknowledgement is drawn from language in the Alford precedent. "I desire to avail myself of the state's offer," the statement adds.
Last November Story was accused of stealing fire department funds while employed by Rural 7, and her activity was linked to some $18,000 in missing department money.
According to findings recently completed by a forensic accounting firm that audited Rural 7's books and confirmed by additional sources, the actual figure involved in the case was $1,163.80. The remainder of the $18,000, the audit suggested, was located in the department's accounts soon after the case was filed. The audit findings also concluded that Rural 7 currently owes Story the sum of $952.13 for unreimbursed purchases made by Story for Rural 7. Story paid back the missing money within a month but, according to the audit, overpaid Rural 7 against what was owed her.
"There's going to be a hearing to determine the actual figure of restitution owed," Rural 7 Chief Anthony Browning says of the report of the sum in question.
"We're glad the case has gone through," Browning says. "The matter went through the attorney general and was followed through. We represent the tax payers. With what we saw in front of us at the time, we had to pursue this case."
"I made a mistake," Story says of the verdict. "I wrote a check off Rural 7's account, and I repaid it within 27 days. I'd taken money out as a draw before, and I didn't know it was not lawful to do that. Rural 7 is an honorable place to work, and I would never want to hurt them. But they totally misrepresented me."
The initial incident leading to the case involved funds that Story drew against a Rural 7 account to cover costs related to her then-business, Burger Boy. "I admit I did something wrong," she says of the incident. "But I paid the money back right away, and I'm not the thief they painted me out to be."
Story's attorney, Adam Moore of Yakima, says he knew his client wanted to have the matter come to a conclusion. "We accepted the state's offer," he says, "though I would have tried this case happily. This was a very grave misunderstanding."
Story's son, Reggie Bartkowksi, an officer in the Goldendale Police Department, phoned The Sentinel to offer his comments on the case. He considers the matter should have been dropped immediately. "There was no criminal intent whatsoever," he says. "Rural 7 owes her $952. I believe there needs to be further investigation of Rural 7 on false reporting and making false statements."
 Fired employee files claim suit against county
Lou Marzeles
News Editor
Fired county employee Kathy Coons has filed a tort claim suit for $700,000 against Klickitat County. The claim asserts the figure represents expenses and damages that may add up for her because of what she claims to be the county's wrongful termination of her employment.
Coons' suit charges the county with retaliatory firing of her "in response to her vocal opposition to, and refusal to participate in, a scheme carried out by [County Assessor Van] Vandenberg and Chief Assessor Michael McBride to illegally utilize artificial and inflated statistical data in assessing property within Klickitat County, thereby setting values far above the actual fair market value of the land," as her suit reads. The claim also says that Vandenberg and McBride utilized the scheme to benefit themselves through setting assessments favorable to them and additionally by "increasing their influence and control within County government."
Reached Monday by phone, Vandenberg said that on advice of legal counsel, he could make no comment on the case.
Coons' attorney, Gregory Ferguson of Vancouver, says that county officials know that records available through public information requests will prove his case for him. "The records are there," he states.
Ferguson sees it as inevitable that the case will go to trial. "There is a slim-to-none chance that this will settle out of court," he says. "Agencies don't like to do that, since it suggests admission of wrongdoing. I anticipate a trial. We'll wait the required 60 days for the county to respond, and we have up to the three-year statute of limitation on the matter in which to proceed."
Ferguson says he plans to use the public information act to acquire more information and may pursue further litigation based on that information, though he suggests his client can already readily demonstrate her case. The current claim against the county goes into considerable detail on what it calls the county's unlawful conduct, particularly in regard to McBride, who was Coons' supervisor.
Ferguson says he's particularly concerned about the county's internal investigation of Coons' claims against McBride and Vandenberg. Personnel Manager Randi Post became involved, according to Coons' claim, "and rather than bring in an independent third party to investigate, she referred the matter to the County's own third-party liability insurer and legal counsel, Canfield & Associates." The conclusion reached by that counsel was that Coons' difficulties with McBride were based primarily on a "personality conflict" between the two.
"I don't know that I've ever seen the liability carrier of a county do an investigation on a county matter like this and submit it to the county commissioners," Ferguson says. "That's new, to see them anointed as the independent authority."
In addition to Vandenberg and McBride, Coons' claim lists several other county officials as persons believed to be involved in the matter by virtue of having been made aware of Coons' charges and choosing to dismiss them.
City proclaims November Hunger Action Month
On the heels of a proclamation of November as Hunger Action Month by Goldendale Mayor Arletta Parton, the Greater Goldendale Chamber of Commerce is preparing to begin a major hunger action campaign.
"October is Hunger Awareness Month," explains Chamber executive director Mindy Blomquist. "On Nov. 7, Hunger Action Month begins, lasting through the month. One builds on the other; first, creating awareness of how many people go hungry, then the action phase begins, focusing on what to do about hunger."
The mayor's proclamation cites some revealing statistics on hunger just in the Goldendale area.
"Each month, 1,496 Goldendale area residents receive food boxes or hot meals from local agencies," the proclamation reads.
"These agencies receive the majority of the food they distribute from the local arm of the food bank."
Requests for food from the Goldendale food bank have increased 27 percent over the last year, stretching the capacity of area food distribution agencies to keep pace.
The mayor's proclamation continues, "Whereas the Greater Goldendale Area Chamber of Commerce, partnering with the food bank, has vowed to stamp out hunger in our community; now, therefore, I, Arletta Parton, Mayor of the City of Goldendale, proclaim the month of November, 2009, as Hunger Action Month in Goldendale, and challenge citizens, businesses and organizations within the community to participate in local food drives that will fill the shelves at the regional food bank and stamp out hunger in our community."
As part of that effort, the Chamber and associated businesses will have blue barrels posted around the city to collect food. Barrels will be at the three banks in the city and at the two food markets, as well as at city hall.
A food drive will be ongoing through November, coordinated in association with other Chambers of Commerce in the Gorge.
"The campaign is called, 'Four Counties, Two States, One Goal: Feed the Gorge,'" Blomquist says. City mayors throughout the area have made proclamations and ramped up their communities for the drive.
The four counties involved are Klickitat and Skamania counties in Washington and Wasco and Hood River counties in Oregon.
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