Local news
Dooly trials set to begin on Monday
By BECKY CRISSMAN
becky.crissman@gaflnews.com
DOOLY CO. — Ariebell (Dana) Barron, wife of County Commissioner David Barron will appear in court here Monday. She goes on trial for multiple counts of voter fraud.
Also scheduled for trial is Eddie Daniels, mayor pro tem for the City of Vienna.
Unadilla City Councilmen Dexter Whittaker and Tony Lester, a former councilman in that city, Bobby West, former Unadilla City Administrator Ronnie Brand and former Unadilla Police Chief Leonard Smith who originally were scheduled for trial next week, have been granted a continuance. Their cases probably will come before the Superior Court in January of 2009.
Barron was indicted in October of 2007 on 25 counts involving voter fraud during the 2006 county commission race in which her husband defeated the incumbent, Wayne West for the District 5 seat.
Of those indictments, four are for inserting a fraudulent entry into a voter’s certification or ballot. Nine of the counts are for unlawful possession of ballots and eleven are for fraudulent application for absent ballot.
Barron is accused of fraudulently applying for absentee ballots in the names of several elderly people in a nursing home without possessing the proper degree of kinship required by state statute.
She is further accused of inserting a fraudulent entry on the ballots by signing the person’s name to ballots voting for her husband. Barron is also charged with being in possession of those ballots outside the polling place and not being an officer charged by law with the care of ballots and ballot cards.
Daniels was indicted in July of this year for insurance fraud, making false statements, and theft by deception.
The city official allegedly provided false information to a law enforcement officer regarding the circumstances surrounding a traffic collision involving his green Honda Civic in February 2005.
It is alleged that Daniels told Officer John Mathis of the Vienna Police Department that he was the driver of the vehicle at the time of the accident, when he, in fact, was not the driver.
He is further accused of making a false representation of a material fact by filing a claim for the purpose of procuring payment for the vehicle from the insurance company, Nationwide Insurance. Then on or about April 1, 2005 he received a payment from the insurance company for the vehicle.
Present and former Unadilla city officials and employees were charged with fiduciary theft by taking for allegedly misappropriating city funds by giving Smith a ‘personal loan’ which was not authorized by law.
Whittaker, Lester and West each also face charges for violation of oath by a public officer and violation of the Georgia open meetings act, while Whittaker and Smith face an additional charge of conspiracy to defraud a political subdivision.
Another former councilman, Jeffrey Minor was charged with the same offenses as Whittaker, Lester and West, but he has already accepted a plea and has been sentenced by Judge Robert Chasteen to one year probation. He also will be ordered to pay a fine.
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