| Sources |
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 30 Aug 2010.
KEENER RESIGNS AS COUNTY CLERK
by DEREK HODGES
County Clerk Joe Keener officially resigned from his courthouse post Monday in a letter to County Mayor Larry Waters. In the letter he apologizes after admitting he “did not live up to” the expectations local voters had for him in the job.
Financial records in Keener’s office came under scrutiny early last week when auditors doing the regular annual check of the county’s books found issues in the numbers that raised red flags. They called in another team of investigators to look into the matter, with that group wrapping up its work late last week. There’s no word yet on what they found.
While Keener admits “certain receipts” were not handled properly, he doesn’t go into detail about the circumstances, but he assures that “that all funds are accounted for and properly deposited.”
Keener took an unpaid leave of absence officially starting Aug. 25, though he reportedly had not been on the job since Aug. 23. He has not commented publicly on the matter.
State law dictates a procedure for how a replacement for the job will be chosen. More on that and this developing story online and in tomorrow’s Mountain Press and online.
n dhodges@themountainpress.com
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 31 Aug 2010.
Keener's friends sad, disappointed
A line that snakes down the hallway waits for service after the clerks office opened back up Tuesday afternoon. (Curt Habraken/The Mountain Press)
By DEREK HODGES
SEVIERVILLE — Local officials who worked with Joe Keener II through his 18 years as county clerk spoke of a good man who made a bad mistake and, while they fully expect him to be punished if it’s found his actions were criminal, they hope for redemption.
Since last week, as news spread that Keener may have gotten himself into trouble due to money missing from his office, many at the courthouse have found themselves mourning for a man they say was jovial and a hard worker for local citizens.
The language they use is what most people reserve for describing someone who has died, catching themselves sometimes using words like “was” to describe him. Indeed, several have said it feels like someone has died at the courthouse, with the somber mood in there lately.
“I couldn’t believe it when I first heard,” County Trustee Jettie Clabo says. “I kept thinking, ‘This just can’t be happening.’ It just kind of breaks your heart. I feel for Joe and especially his family. They all need our love and support now.”
Clabo says she called Keener last week to offer her support and prayers, but he didn’t answer the phone and hasn’t returned the message she left. While she would like the opportunity to talk to a man she considers a friend, Clabo’s not really sure what she would say other than what she already said in that voicemail.
“It’s just hard to think of what words you would use,” she says. “I’ve known Joe for a long time and he’s a good guy, but I guess good guys make mistakes. Joe’s made a big one and we don’t know why he did it. I can’t imagine what kind of situation he must have been in to decide to do something like that.”
Clabo is far from excusing Keener’s behavior; she’s just having trouble reconciling the man and public servant she knows with what it appears he’s done.
“Joe is always so happy and nice,” Clabo says. “He was probably as good a public servant as any official in this courthouse before this happened. He went beyond his means to help you.”
County Commissioner Jimmie Temple agrees Keener went above and beyond to serve people in the office the voters elected him to five times, including on Aug. 5.
“He’s been a good officeholder,” says Temple, quickly adding, “but things happen. When he came into office, he was young and energetic. He began to do a lot of things in his office to streamline.”
Temple points out Keener extended the department’s hours, modernized the systems for marriage and notary licenses, and started offering drive-up service for things like tag renewals.
Still, Temple knows Keener must be held accountable if he did something wrong.
“He’s made a terrible mistake,” Temple said. “He can’t blame anyone but himself. He’s got to pull himself up, and he’s got to rely on his friends and family to help him get through this. He may come out of this a better man. We’ll just have to see.”
They’re tough words from a man who says he’s known Keener since the former clerk was just a boy.
“I knew his daddy and granddaddy, and I watched him grow up,” Temple says. “I was a close friend to Joe Keener. At least, I considered myself a close friend. I just haven’t been able to get this off my mind. I just keep thinking about Joe and his family. We’re all hurt and saddened by this.”
Those feelings seem pretty common among those who worked closely with Keener. County Mayor Larry Waters’ office is just across the hall.
While the mayor and the clerk had some spats over the years, including a very public battle over space for Keener’s office a couple years ago, Waters says neither man let any negative feelings fester.
“In this business you have disagreements with different folks, but you know that’s just part of the job, and Joe always saw it that way, too,” Waters explains. “Joe did his best to modernize his office and to institute additional services for the people he served. He certainly provided assistance to a lot of people in Sevier County.”
When Waters heard the man he describes as “very friendly and easygoing” may have mishandled money in his office, he says he was shocked. Disappointment came soon after, followed by another powerful emotion.
“There is an extreme amount of sadness,” Waters says. “I just hate this happened.”
n dhodges@themountainpress.com
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 25 Sep 2010.
Probe into clerk's office goes on; officials won't say when audit will be released
by DEREK HODGES The Mountain Press
Joe Keener takes path of office four years ago; investigation into his office continues.
SEVIERVILLE — The probes into possible financial wrongdoing by former County Clerk Joe Keener continue, nearly a month after auditors first found something that raised a red flag in the county’s books.
Those findings have since led to a Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) probe into “theft and embezzlement” in the office that is still ongoing, as is research by the staffers from the state comptroller’s office. Unfortunately, it seems likely the public won’t quickly learn the results of those efforts.
Blake Fontenay, a spokesman for the comptroller, was tight-lipped on details, saying he’s bound not to release that information until an official report is printed. Perhaps the most revealing thing he could offer is that, while they’ve left the courtroom they used looking into the clerk’s office’s finances, the auditors are still on the case.
“The investigation is still ongoing, so we cannot release any information,” Fontenay said.
He also explained that auditors don’t like to assign a deadline for completing investigations, fearing they might discover something at the last minute that requires more time. A county official who asked not to be named said folks in the courthouse have been told it will likely be three or four weeks before the information comes out.
Fontenay also wouldn’t comment on reports that the findings from Keener’s office would be released in the same report as the rest of the county audit.
Meanwhile, TBI spokeswoman Kristen Helm said Thursday their probe is also still continuing, offering no other information.
“At this time the Sevier County clerk’s office case is still under investigation,” Helm wrote in an e-mail to The Mountain Press.
While the auditors’ report might offer the evidence, it would be the TBI’s findings that could lead to any criminal charges. District Attorney General Jimmy Dunn will determine if what they discover is enough to warrant prosecution.
Since news of the Keener investigations came out, many have wondered why they have been told by staffers not just in the clerk’s office but other courthouse departments to make checks out to the officeholder by name. It’s a practice that is apparently used statewide and hasn’t caused concerns here.
That may be because early reports indicate that the practice wasn’t part of whatever happened in the clerk’s office prior to Keener’s Aug. 30 resignation.
Still, there are people who are worried by the checks practice. County Mayor Larry Waters defends the county against accusations of anything questionable in allowing the move, pointing out that is allowed by the comptroller’s office and used throughout the state.
“The comptroller’s office tells me that is not unusual anywhere in the state of Tennessee,” Waters said. “It might be something that needs to be viewed from a statewide perspective. It would need to be addressed statewide.”
While Waters won’t condone the practice, he said there may be some misunderstanding about it. The auditors do not allow county officeholders to ask people to write checks with only their name. Rather they’re told to direct them to make the payment to, for instance, “Larry Waters, county mayor.” That move helps prevent an elected official from pocketing checks meant for the county’s coffers.
Asked about it, Fontenay declined, saying he fears his words would be misconstrued to be a comment on the investigation into the clerk’s office rather than a general one on the practice.
n dhodges@themountainpress.com
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 20 Jan 2011.
Statement from Joe Keener about his indictment
Joe Keener, the former Sevier County clerk indicted by a grand jury this week on charges of theft over $60,000 and official misconduct, issued the following statement through his attorney, Wade Davies of Knoxville:
“When I resigned as Sevier County Clerk, I apologized to the people of Sevier County for actions which led to my decision. I stand by the decision and my apology. At the same time, it is important for Sevier County residents to know that before I resigned I cooperated fully with auditors and ensured all funds were accounted for and properly deposited. I know I disappointed people, and I regret that deeply, but I never intended to deprive Sevier County of anything.”
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 21 Jan 2011.
Keener responds to charges
by DEREK HODGES
SEVIERVILLE — Former County Clerk Joe Keener, who was indicted and arrested Wednesday on charges of theft of more than $60,000 and official misconduct, released a statement through his attorney Thursday saying he stands by an earlier apology and “never intended to deprive Sevier County of anything.”
Keener, 50, was released on $15,000 bond about 25 minutes after he turned himself in to authorities at the Sevier County Jail Wednesday evening, according to information provided by the Sheriff’s Department. In a memo sent out by Knoxville attorney Wade Davies just before lunch Thursday, Keener points out he apologized to local residents and repaid money he has apparently admitted taking shortly after state auditors discovered the missing cash.
“When I resigned as Sevier County clerk, I apologized to the people of Sevier County for actions which led to my decision. I stand by the decision and my apology,” Keener’s brief statement reads. “At the same time, it is important for Sevier County residents to know that before I resigned I cooperated fully with auditors and ensured all funds were accounted for and properly deposited.
“I know I disappointed people, and I regret that deeply, but I never intended to deprive Sevier County of anything.”
That last sentence was taken as yet another sign by folks in the courthouse who worked closely with Keener that the man who was chosen six times for the job by the people of Sevier County simply got in over his head. Speculation has swirled since word of the missing money got out in late August that Keener, who was facing a lawsuit from a business partner who alleged he took a huge amount of cash out of a joint venture, just got in over his head and intended to borrow the cash he is said to have taken until he could pay it back.
Keener has done little to shed light on the circumstances, with Thursday’s statement the first time he has spoken publicly since early September.
Auditors looking at the books from the clerk’s office determined there was a total of $92,334.29 missing from deposits from that department on nine separate days in July and August. According to the report they filed, Keener admitted to him that he had taken the money for personal use and did repay the full amount over the course of two days.
Despite making that payment, law enforcement officials are required to charge Keener with a crime if they find sufficient evidence to do so. Investigators with the state Comptroller’s Office turned their findings over to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Despite indications that organization had not yet finished its work as of last week, it apparently did present its information to District Attorney General Jimmy Dunn sometime recently.
In fact, it was so recently that it caught many in the courthouse off guard, with even court officials saying Wednesday they didn’t expect the Keener matter to come before the grand jury this week.
County Mayor Larry Waters is among those who weren’t expecting to learn the counts against Keener soon.
“I was very surprised because, while I guess we all knew there was an investigation going on, I thought the TBI hadn’t finished their report yet,” Waters said Thursday. “The T.B.I. and the Attorney General are fulfilling their responsibilities and I appreciate the professional manner in which they conducted the investigations. This is an unfortunate situation. I think everybody involved certainly regrets it.
“All we can do now is move forward.”
Waters once again expressed his support and confidence for the staff remaining in the office, including interim Clerk Karen Cotter, Keener’s chief deputy was selected by the County Commission to fill the seat until an election can be held next year. While the auditors found no reason to suspect anyone else in the office was involved in Keener’s actions, they did state they believe someone should have noticed what was going on.
Keener could face more than eight years in prison and up to $28,000 in fines if he were to be found guilty of the charges at trial, though many observers expect there will be an effort to cut a deal with prosecutors in the matter. Typically someone convicted of such crimes would also be ordered to make repayment of the missing funds, though that shouldn’t be the case in this matter since Keener already did so.
dhodges@themountainpress.com
|
Search | Advanced Search
1960 - (63 years)
, d. 25 Aug 2002 (Age 80 years) 
