A Primer on Prosecuting Corruption

*Has any county employee, whether he or she was your superior or your subordinate, ever told you that he or she received a request by a commissioner, or a member of a commissioner's staff, regarding a personnel matter?

*If the answer to the third question is yes, describe the conversation, and include what action, if any, you may have taken as a result.

Some of the people on the above list were unwilling or afraid to speak to me regarding this story, while others, I suspect, felt little or no remorse in protecting commissioners by lying to me, especially since there is no penalty for doing so. But if they were to be questioned by a prosecutor, under oath, several results would likely occur.

First, those employees who were afraid to speak up might, I hope, be convinced that the prosecutors involved in the case were committed to seeing the matter through to its just conclusion. There are a lot of honest and hardworking employees at the airport who are disgusted by the unethical and sleazy practices of both their superiors and the commissioners. These airport workers would be willing to tell what they know; all they need is a little encouragement from the State Attorney's Office. Prosecutors might even develop leads on other matters relating to corruption at the airport. Wouldn't that be quaint?

Second, those employees who might have publicly lied in the past to protect county commissioners would have to think twice about doing so under oath. They would have to decide if their loyalty was worth risking an indictment for perjury. And they would begin to wonder what the other people who were questioned either said or might say. A lie can be sustained only if everyone agrees to keep it, and since it would take only one person to crack the veil of silence, the chances are good that the truth can be found.

Assuming, of course, that Rundle is more interested in finding the truth than she is in attending the future birthday parties of arrogant bureaucrats and supercilious politicians.