ROCK CREEK —
“There was a violation of ethics law, and a public reprimand was issued, but there were a number of mitigating circumstances making prosecution unwarranted, and (a) settlement agreement was issued,” Korte said. “Beverly Martin had been asking questions, and she received a lot of conflicting opinions, so a settlement was sufficient in this case.”
The issue concerns allegations that were brought before the commission in July 2009 regarding possible contract and conflict-of-interest violations by Martin, who was serving both as Rock Creek’s mayor and Union Cemetery’s sexton. According to the settlement document, Union Cemetery is owned jointly by Rock Creek village and Morgan Township.
It was alleged Martin continued to serve as cemetery sexton while serving as mayor, and it was learned that Martin, as cemetery sexton, engaged the services of her husband, Virgil Martin, to rent equipment. Virgil Martin also serves as a Morgan Township trustee.
In June 2009, Martin received an opinion from the Ethics Commission, advising her she could not serve as the cemetery sexton with compensation. However, Martin continued to serve as sexton until October 2009 and was compensated for her sexton duties through December 2009, the settlement states.
According to the agreement, the mitigating circumstances included that prior to becoming mayor in January 2008, the Morgan Township trustees sought an opinion from the Ashtabula County Prosecutor’s Office as to whether Martin could continue to serve as sexton and was advised the two positions were compatible. However, the Rock Creek solicitor issued a contrary opinion to the village. Martin then sought an opinion from the Ethics Commission, which advised her she could not serve as both sexton and mayor.
Soon afterward, the Morgan Township trustees chairman contacted the Ethics Commission to determine whether Martin could serve as sexton until a replacement was found, and was referred to the county prosecutor to determine whether Martin could be paid for the service.
In July 2009, Martin resigned as sexton in writing, but the trustees chairman refused to accept her resignation. The Prosecutor’s Office forwarded a letter to the chairman, advising that Martin could not serve receive sexton compensation. The investigation revealed the chairman “failed to share the prosecutor’s correspondence with Martin or his fellow trustees.”
Martin released a statement Wednesday, saying:
“I realize now that I made two mistakes in this matter. First, I took the word of the (trustees) board chairman that the (Ethics) Commission said I could continue until a new sexton was trained. There was some miscommunication between the chairman and the commission, and the (Ethics) Commission maintained it had never told anyone it was appropriate for me to continue as sexton. I accept full responsibility for this mistake as it was my duty, and not the (chairman’s), to contact the commission.
“The second mistake was that I continued to serve and work as sexton in order to train the new replacement. I understand now that I should have stopped in June 2009, and I also take full responsibility for this, as well. My honesty and personal integrity are the most important things I own. It is deeply embarrassing to me to undergo such public scrutiny over actions I took because I thought I was serving the public interest. I understand my mistakes, and I deeply regret them,” she said.
Martin has reimbursed the Union Cemetery board $3,500, which amounts to more than 25 percent of her annual salary as sexton.
Korte said Martin has been cooperative during the course of the investigation.
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