Published: July 23, 2008 08:59 pm      

Inman questions clerk's job attendance

EDMOND — Oklahoma County Clerk Carolynn Caudill appeared at her office to work only 30 percent of the time through June this year, according to her opponent in Tuesday’s election.

The county clerk’s office is a major record keeper for the public. Caudill’s work document was made public after an open records request was set in motion by Stan Inman, Caudill’s opponent. Inman’s allegations are based on a county document released Tuesday.

“In my 12 years in the county, I have worked many thousand of hours around the clock,” Caudill told The Edmond Sun. “I even have bought my own computer so I can work at home, too. You could not accomplish as much as I have if I was not there.”

Caudill insists that she has worked an appropriate number of hours at her job.

Republicans Caudill and Inman will be the only candidates on Tuesday’s primary ballot to elect the county clerk. No Democrats filed for the county seat. The winner will be automatically elected to office.

Caudill isn’t the only candidate with a sore festering in her political future. Trouble also brews for Inman. Caudill told The Sun on Wednesday that Inman’s campaign received money from a convicted felon. Inman’s campaign and expenditures report lists former state Sen. Leo Kingston as a $1,000 contributor to Inman’s campaign. Kingston was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. He served eight years in prison after a 1990 sentence and paid a $406,000 fine.

“My accountant is who receives the money and files the reports. We’ll take a look at that and if we need to do something we will,” Inman said.

His single term as Oklahoma County Commissioner, 2003-06, ended when Ray Vaughn of Edmond defeated him in the 2006 election.

Caudill said Inman was attacking her credibility with “slanderous” lies and half-truths. She may pursue libel action against him, she added.

Inman ignored two disclaimers stating her time-at-work record is affected by other variables and cannot be used to verify her time at work, Caudill said.

Inman began his inquiry knowing Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel’s office had placed a new security system in the Oklahoma County building. This system makes it impossible for a county employee to enter or exit from the building’s parking garage without an identification badge, Inman said.

“She’s trapped by her own security system that shows anybody’s coming and going,” Inman insisted.

Inman said his campaign requested a copy of Caudill’s on-the-job attendance record from the clerk’s office on June 25. He said Caudill’s office notified him about 10 days later that her work schedule was maintained by the sheriff’s office and they would request a copy. Inman suspected the clerk’s office was delaying releasing that information to keep him from receiving a copy of her work record.

“The Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office does not maintain records of an individual’s every entry and exit of the county buildings,” stated Danny Honeycutt, general counsel to the Oklahoma County sheriff. “An example of this would be instances where multiple individuals enter the premises upon the swipe of a single card at a reader.”

Inman confirmed with Whetsel’s office that Caudill’s work record had been received by the clerk’s office, Inman said. Caudill’s office was then instructed by Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater’s office to release to Inman her record that details her time at work.

Regarding Kingston’s campaign contribution, Inman said Caudill is trying to use that as a “last ditch effort” to revive her campaign.

“If she is going to sling mud, she needs to look at her own house first,” Inman said. “If she’s going to start questioning integrity, she needs to start looking at her dealings with abstractors who contribute to her campaign and whose relatives she hires,” Inman said.

Inman said the clerk’s campaign accepts money from abstractors with whom she does direct business.

Caudill said abstractors are by law allowed space in the county clerk’s office. There is nothing wrong with accepting campaign money from abstractors, she said.



TO LEARN MORE about Stan Inman, visit www.staninman.com. For more information about Carolynn Caudill, go to www.reelectcaudill.com.