Augusta grand jury releases plan to fix city corruption

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Posted 2:07PM on Wednesday, November 20, 2002

AUGUSTA - A three-year grand jury investigation into government corruption in Augusta came to a fairly simple conclusion: City operations are so messed up the residents of Augusta need to fight corruption themselves. The grand jury released its final report Tuesday after years of sorting through problems in local government cronyism and fraud at the fire department, weak ethics laws for local officials and rules that make it hard for the commissioners and mayor to get much done. The 23 jurors decided the entire structure of Augusta government needs to be overhauled, and that citizens should not trust politicians to fix the problems. ``It is time for the community itself to take direct action,'' jurors wrote, citing earlier reform attempts that failed. The decision said ``nothing has been done to ameliorate the present situation,'' despite a ``pressing need for governmental reform.'' Among the conclusions the grand jury drew in its series of 10 reports: A simple majority should be able to rule Augusta Commission meetings when a quorum is present. Currently the commission's voting rules lead to gridlock that can last months. The fire department was dripping with corruption and fraud, including misuse of public funds. Some black fire department officials tried to hide illegal behavior by claiming an investigation was racially motivated. Ethics laws for local officials should be tougher. New grand juries made up of citizens should be called every five to seven years until a charter ``with adequate checks and balances'' is drafted. City purchasing operations need to be overhauled to make sure tax money is not misspent. The long grand jury investigation was subject to some criticisms itself. Some wondered what could possibly be taking the jury so long and what exactly they were doing. The sweeping scope of the grand jury was allowed because earlier grand juries assigned to specific problems would come out complaining there was much more corruption they didn't have time to sort out. In court Tuesday morning, Superior Court Judge Albert M. Pickett read the report's recommendations aloud at one point he even broke his demeanor and exclaimed ``Hallelujah!'' to one of the jury's recommendations. Pickett also commended the panel for working long hours under ``intense public scrutiny and occasional public criticism.'' ``They were doing the people's business and the people's work,'' he said. The special grand jury will remain empaneled for 60 more days. District Attorney Danny Craig said the panel will only reconvene if their conclusions are disputed. ``Right now, they anticipate this being their final presentment,'' Craig said.