Escambia Children’s Trust Executive Director Lindsey Cannon told the Trust board yesterday that she has uncovered evidence suggesting New World Believers (NWB) may have billed both the Children’s Trust and the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice for the same services provided to the same youth — a potential violation that could affect more than $900,000 in grant funding awarded to the organization since 2023.
- Cannon’s report came during the Trust’s March 11 board meeting, where the board also voted to pursue civil action against NWB to recover three vehicles purchased with grant funds after the organization’s contract was terminated on January 31 following the arrest of its executive director on charges of sexual battery on a minor.
Possible Double-Billing Clouds Reimbursement Review
Cannon told the board she has been cross-referencing NWB’s billing records against records obtained from the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, which contracts separately with NWB for a civil citation diversion program. What she found raises serious concerns about duplicate billing for the same children during the same time periods.
- “What we have seen is a listing of the youth that were in their program or that they referred to New World Believers from October 1, 2023, to January 8, 2026,” Cannon said. “What we were able to find from our records is that there were 50, potentially 60 youth that overlapped.”
Cannon described a pattern in which youth referred by DJJ to the H.O.O.P.S. program appeared to be billed under both contracts simultaneously—NWB collecting reimbursement from the Children’s Trust while also collecting a daily rate from DJJ for the same children during overlapping time periods.
- “Does that look like supplanting? Does that look like double-billing? I think we need more information,” Cannon said. “But if that is not what’s happening, we certainly want to pay them appropriately and make sure that they get everything that they are owed. But if not, we need to have a different discussion because we’re also going to have to report that to the IG.”
Review Could Take Weeks, Spans Full Contract Period
Cannon said her office only received more than 400 pages of DJJ records last Friday and that a thorough review will take time. Critically, the review will not be limited to the November and December invoices NWB is currently seeking; it will span the entire contract period, going back to 2023.
- “If this has been happening, it’s been happening for two years,” she said.
Board member David Williams pressed Cannon on the timeline. She indicated that the review will require multiple staff members to work through overlapping data across approximately 50 cases before any reimbursement determination can be made.
Background: The Children’s Trust terminated its contract with NWB’s H.O.O.P.S. program on January 31, following the January 22 arrest of former executive director Rodney Jones on charges of sexual battery on a minor — a victim who was a member of his youth organization. The Trust has awarded NWB more than $900,000 in grant funding since 2023.
NWB Program Director Pleads Her Case
Earlier in the meeting, NWB program director Latasha Jones addressed the board during public comment, arguing that the organization had not been fairly treated and was owed reimbursement for November and December expenses submitted before the termination.
- “We put in our payments for November and December payment of last year, but we have yet to receive our monies from ECT,” Jones told the board. “We put in the proper receipts and everything that we needed to put in.”
Jones also disputed the Trust’s authority to demand the vehicles back, contending that the organization had been given permission to purchase them with grant funds.
- “You guys had gave us permission to purchase the vehicles, but you didn’t say that you needed to be with us to be lien holders on the vehicles,” she said, adding that withholding reimbursement while demanding the vehicles amounted to acting in bad faith.
Trust Votes to Sue for the Vehicles
The board voted 5-0 to authorize civil action to recover the three vehicles — a 2015 Ford Transit 350, a 2010 Dodge Caravan, and a 1998 Honda Odyssey — at the recommendation of Trust attorney Megan Fry of the Clark Partington law firm.
Fry pushed back on NWB’s suggestion that the vehicle demand and the reimbursement review were linked, making clear the two matters are legally independent.
“No communication has indicated that we’re holding reimbursement — something that’s probably properly reimbursable — in exchange for the vehicles,” Fry said. “These are two separate issues.”
The civil action, if filed, would seek a court order for the return of the vehicles under a legal claim known as replevin. Fry said the last written demand for the vehicles was sent on February 13, with no agreement from NWB forthcoming.
- What Comes Next: The Trust is now authorized to move forward with litigation to recover the three vehicles. The reimbursement review continues, with a possible referral to the Inspector General if duplicative billing is confirmed.
Missing the Big Picture
The Trust board continues to treat these allegations of misuse of tax dollars as outliers. However, these possible discrepancies at NWB would never have been discovered if Rodney Jones had not been under investigation and later arrested.
- Remember, the Trust staff and its program committee recommended, and the board approved, renewing NWB’s contract for a third year just last December. Inweekly and this blog pointed out several discrepancies in the NWB’s financial reports and tax returns. Read more.
How can the public have any confidence that all other tax dollars have been properly spent?
- The Trust staff should not audit the grants and review their oversight shortcomings. An outside, independent firm should look at all programs.