AG McMaster bungled Five Rivers plea bargain

In today's editorial, The Sun News considers S.C. AG Henry McMaster's handling of the Five Rivers criminal case plea bargain and finds him wanting as a candidate for governor:

Attorney General Henry H. McMaster's office took over prosecution of the Five Rivers Community Development Corp. case, but the attorney general's assistants acted more like they wanted to be done with the case than to press for justice for the people of Georgetown County.

Beulah White and her daughter Dayo White pleaded guilty to a combined six felony charges but -- on the recommendation of the attorney general's office -- evidently won't spend any time behind bars. The charges were criminal conspiracy, felony embezzlement and felony breach of trust with fraudulent intent.

Both were given suspended sentences of five years and placed on probation. Dayo White was ordered to pay restitution of $52,489 and her mother to pay restitution of $3,500.

The two ran the now-defunct Five Rivers nonprofit as a personal cash cow instead of providing assistance to low-income residents. Dayo White wrote 13 checks to herself totaling $42,900 from the nonprofit's bank account and when the canceled checks came back, altered the payee and memo lines to make it appear the checks were to a legitimate vendor. Dayo White also used a Five Rivers credit card to buy $9,355.87 in jewelry, clothing and a high-definition television. Beulah White used the nonprofit's credit card for at least $5,000 in personal items. She also gave to a friend $3,500 in agency money.

Beulah White was the executive director of Five Rivers and Dayo White the chief financial officer. An investigation by The Sun News, which led to the charges, showed that most of the money the nonprofit received from state and federal grants went to salaries, travel and other expenses for the Whites and their relatives.

Judge Steven John said the victims of the Whites' crimes are the low-income residents of Georgetown County who needed the financial assistance Five Rivers was supposed to provide.

In sentencing the two, the judge said: ``This is a sad day for the people of Georgetown County. They are truly the victims in this matter.''

The attorney general's prosecutor, Curtis Pauling, said the plea agreement was offered because of potential problems with subpoenas issued by the 15th Judicial Circuit solicitor's office. Nevertheless, many folks remain flabbergasted with the light sentences.

Mason Hardy, executive director of the S.C. Association of Nonprofit Organizations, said, "I would have thought they'd receive a harsher sentence than probation.'' Hardy and Gary Snyder, a national nonprofit consultant, both said the outcome of the case sends a terrible message to persons entrusted with public money. "It's telling people that the courts don't think this kind of thing is a very big deal,'' Snyder said.

Clearly, the nonprofit's board of directors fell short of providing proper oversight. As Hardy said, the case should be a lesson for all nonprofits.

McMaster, a potential candidate for governor, evidently also has an oversight problem. As attorney general, he has seriously failed the people of South Carolina in the Five Rivers case. His sorry performance there doesn't suggest he is strong gubernatorial timber.

Comments?

Beulah White and her daughter Dayo White pleaded guilty to a combined six felony charges but -- on the recommendation of the attorney general's office -- evidently won't spend any time behind bars. The charges were criminal conspiracy, felony embezzlement and felony breach of trust with fraudulent intent.

Both were given suspended sentences of five years and placed on probation. Dayo White was ordered to pay restitution of $52,489 and her mother to pay restitution of $3,500.

The two ran the now-defunct Five Rivers nonprofit as a personal cash cow instead of providing assistance to low-income residents. Dayo White wrote 13 checks to herself totaling $42,900 from the nonprofit's bank account and when the canceled checks came back, altered the payee and memo lines to make it appear the checks were to a legitimate vendor. Dayo White also used a Five Rivers credit card to buy $9,355.87 in jewelry, clothing and a high-definition television. Beulah White used the nonprofit's credit card for at least $5,000 in personal items. She also gave to a friend $3,500 in agency money.

Beulah White was the executive director of Five Rivers and Dayo White the chief financial officer. An investigation by The Sun News, which led to the charges, showed that most of the money the nonprofit received from state and federal grants went to salaries, travel and other expenses for the Whites and their relatives.

Judge Steven John said the victims of the Whites' crimes are the low-income residents of Georgetown County who needed the financial assistance Five Rivers was supposed to provide.

In sentencing the two, the judge said: ``This is a sad day for the people of Georgetown County. They are truly the victims in this matter.''

The attorney general's prosecutor, Curtis Pauling, said the plea agreement was offered because of potential problems with subpoenas issued by the 15th Judicial Circuit solicitor's office. Nevertheless, many folks remain flabbergasted with the light sentences.

Mason Hardy, executive director of the S.C. Association of Nonprofit Organizations, said, "I would have thought they'd receive a harsher sentence than probation.'' Hardy and Gary Snyder, a national nonprofit consultant, both said the outcome of the case sends a terrible message to persons entrusted with public money. "It's telling people that the courts don't think this kind of thing is a very big deal,'' Snyder said.

Clearly, the nonprofit's board of directors fell short of providing proper oversight. As Hardy said, the case should be a lesson for all nonprofits.

McMaster, a potential candidate for governor, evidently also has an oversight problem. As attorney general, he has seriously failed the people of South Carolina in the Five Rivers case. His sorry performance there doesn't suggest he is strong gubernatorial timber.

Comments?