Lucas Co. asks high court to attach man’s pension

10/27/2012

Lucas County has appealed to the Ohio Supreme Court an appellate ruling that most of the $658,428 stolen from Toledo Public Schools by a former district administrator should not be withheld from the man’s public pension.

While the Ohio 6th District Court of Appeals affirmed last month that former TPS Business Manager Dan Burns owes restitution for the entire amount, it said only the $52,429 that the school district did not recover from two insurance companies can be withheld from Burns’ pension payments.

“In this case, if the Court of Appeals’ decision is unchanged, Burns, through his [state] pension, pays back only $52,429.00 and keeps more than $600,000 in stolen public money,” stated the appeal filed Friday by the county prosecutor’s office. “For him, crime pays — or will pay if the decision below is not reversed. This result will likely not be lost on future sticky-fingered public officials.”

Burns, who is serving a 10-year sentence at the Marion Correctional Institution, was convicted nearly two years ago in Lucas County Common Pleas Court of one count each of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, theft in office, and tampering with records in a scheme that defrauded the school district between 2002 and 2006. Restitution to both the insurers and the school district was included in his sentence.