The legal bills are piling up in Escambia County Clerk Pam Childers’ quest to prove the 401(a) retirement plan for the county commissioners, which has been in effect since 1998, is illegal. Through Sept. 30, the Clerk has been billed $61,992 by attorney Matt Dannheisser and $86,547 by attorney Ed Fleming for a total of $148,539.
The Board of County Commissioner is represented by the Levin Papantonio Rafferty law firm at no cost.
The county has gotten three legal opinions that the plan is legal, but Childers refused to accept them. She also refused a request by the board to jointly go to the Attorney General for a legal opinion on the matter.
In January 2022, Childers quit cutting checks for the retirement plans for Commissioner Steven Barry, Robert Bender and Lumon May. The BCC filed a lawsuit questioning Childers’ authority to do so and asking the judge to compel her to cut the checks. Parties are currently holding depositions.
Law Offices of Matt E. Dannheisser | |||
As of Feb 2022 | $16,008.00 | ||
2/21-3/16/22 | $ 5,940.50 | ||
3/21-4/18/22 | $ 6,694.00 | ||
4/25-6/17/22 | $ 8,589.00 | ||
7/5-7/20/22 | $ 2,368.25 | ||
7/25-8/20/22 | $ 15,727.25 | ||
8/21-9/1/22 | $ 6,665.00 | ||
$ 45,984.00 | |||
Total – Dannheisser | $ 61,992.00 | ||
McDonald Fleming | |||
As of Feb 2022 | $ 11,672.50 | ||
March | $ 2,703.25 | ||
April | $ 12,137.25 | ||
May | $ 2,593.50 | ||
June | $ 32,565.00 | ||
July | $ 4,264.75 | ||
August | $ 10,686.07 | ||
September | $ 9,924.75 | ||
$ 74,874.57 | |||
Total- McDonald Fleming | $ 86,547.07 | ||
Grand Total | $ 148,539.07 |
She was too stubborn to get an opinion. Time to drop it.
Gilley should not have sided with Underhill passing out HR documents to Underhill. Which by the way is yet another abuse of office by him. We all know it is/was him. Why hasn’t DeSantis removed him yet?
Thursday meeting is going to be a fiasco. DD has the invocation and showboating hour passing out plaques on the agenda.
So much for fiscal responsibility for the clerk.
The 401a is a lump sum, without lifetime payouts and survivor benefits. Just because the crayon guy on PNJ and Underhill’s cult following have no critical thinking skills about that doesn’t mean others can’t see through this.
Hope they have good security at the BCC meeting, if De Santis is too busy blowing his own trumpet and not in Tallahassee doing his job. He has a few more hours to get this done.
Drop it Wonder Woman. You’ve done enough damage.
Almost a quarter of a million taxpayer dollars wasted by Doug Underhill & Pam Childers on their vanity plays.
Pam wants revenge on behalf of Janice Gilley and Doug is hoping to milk the Guvnah’s clock so he can qualify for his state retirement (that he doesn’t need or want.)
Fiduciary responsibility? What a damn joke.