The Amherst news-times. (Amherst, Ohio), 1994-09-21

              timer, Serving the Sandstone Capital of the World since 1874 Wednesday, September 21, 1994 988-2801 State audit reveals arresting facts at city hall by Kathleen Koshar A special audit released last week by the state auditor's office reveals why former tax secretary Jean Donnelly was charged with misappropriation of public funds by the county prosecutor last week. Donnelly entered a plea of not guilty last week to the charges. She resigned from the position on Sept. 30, 1992, after having been on medical leave of absence since March of that year. But the audit reveals a huge bookkeeping mess left Island prison War buff finds soldier spirits alive by Marsha Jaquays The Civil War represents America at its weakest point. Brothers were killing brothers as the nation remained torn by boundaries which divided the north and south. Remnants of the war are splattered across the south but the northern states have nearly erased any memory of the battles. Lessons about the Civil War have been saved for the history books. Except the years can't keep Amherst resident Don Breen from thinking about the war. For the past 30 years he has found himself nestled in a small island off Sandusky Bay Johnson's Island. What started as a thesis for his graduate studies, has become a career of lectures and reports on a Civil War prison that exists in his backyard. Three miles across the lake from Sandusky and one mile from Catawba once lived 15,000 Confederate officer prisoners. Today there is a statue and iron fence which guards the grave stones of southern gentlemen who didn't make it home. Few come to visit the tombstones. Few know the site even exists and even less care. But that doesn't matter to Breen. It fascinates him that there was a time when Americans killed their own blood and locked up their countrymen. "The great tragedy of the war is there were over 660,000 casualties and everyone of them was an American," Breen said. "It was really brothers killing brothers as families split." Breen had always been a history buff. He taught the subject for the Lorain school district for years. But something drew him to the hideaway that isolated soldiers from a war torn country. "As a kid I remember going to the Memorial Day parades and there were still Civil War vets and I remember seeing the old men there. It impressed me," Breen explained. "My great, great grandfather was wounded and captured as a prisoner of the southerners. . "All of this was in the back of my mind." As Breen submersed himself in library books about the Civil War, he became obsessed with the nineteenth century era. He often travelled to southern states with a metal detector in hand so he could dig up any Civil War artifacts. Sidewalks, curfews hot agenda topics for by Marsha Jaquays Council members tabled two controversial agenda requests at Monday's meeting until further research is completed. Residents who are falling over cracks in the sidewalks will have to watch their step for just a little longer. Although it was unanimously decided that there are some poor sidewalks in the city and streets without sidewalks are a danger, city officials want to sift through the old ordinance before passing new behind in the treasurer's office by the former administration as well as Donnelly. Kathleen Litkovitz, treasurer since January, 1990, said last week that she is reluctant to discuss the report because of the criminial charges lodged against Donnelly. Although Litkovitz and the city's bonding company, Ohio Casualty Insurance Company, were also implicated in the report, Litkovitz said she has been told by state officials that she has been named as a per .or Although those days are over, Breen docs enjoy the occasional lecture on Johnson's Island. He just came back from a trip to Virginia where he gave his narration of the yankce prison for southern officers. But what gives him the most pleasure is sharing the history with his fellow Ohioans. Breen breaks his story into three different topics. He begins with the history. Johnson's prison opened its doors on April 10, 1862. Colonial Hoffman wanted to find a place around Lake Erie that would be secure. He checked all the islands, including Kelly, but was worried about the winery. The colonial wasn't concerned about the prisoners, but knew the guards would indulge every once in a while. After much search, Hoffman settled on Johnson's Island and ordered the transfer of 200 captured soldiers from the prison in Columbus. The maximum amount of prisoners held was in December 1864 with 3,209 men at one time. Breen said for the first couple of years the two sides exchanged prisoner for prisoner but the northerners eventually stopped because the southerners wouldn't recognize black soldiers for exchange. "They also realized that every man who was exchanged was another possible recruit for the war," he explained. "They weren't supposed to fight, but we knew they cheated because the south was desperate for manpower." The daily life of a Confederate soldier sounds more like a day at camp that a woeful tale of a prisoner of war. Since the prisoners were officers they didn't have to suffer hard labor. The biggest responsibility was cooking and cleaning the barracks. However, the days were long and boring. The men established several CONTINUED on page 3 legislation. "There is an ordinance on the books now and we are not abiding by it," council member Nancy Brown said. The ordinance currently states that homeowners who do not have sidewalks in front of their property will eventually have to put one in. The city will attatch the cost of the project to utility bills for those who cannot afford the initial expense. Once the sidewalks are in place the property owner is responsible functory measure because she is head of the treasurer's department Litkovitz has not been charged by the prosecutor and in fact called for the special audit in January, 1992. The slate auditor's department performed the audit of records of the income tax department for the period of Jan. 1, 1990, through Dec. 31, 1991. In a letter to Mayor John Ja-worski and Litkovitz written June 18, auditor Thomas Ferguson wrote, "Our audit disclosed that the income ' The picture above shows prison guards who worked at Johnson's Island. The photo was taken sometime between 1863-65. At right is a playbill from a performance that was being staged by the Rebellonians. Although being held prisoners, southern soldiers organized their own theatre troupe. At bottom is shown a ticket sold for the performance. .i .fwiij frtt .,-seSfe'- 1JtK ) . t, for the upkeep. If anyone should fall on a crack the resident could be subject to a lawsuit by the victim. Major John Jaworski said that years ago there was a part-time inspector who walked the streets in search of violators. But as the years passed the law became harder to enforce. "It is more complex than people may think," he said. "A good share of the streets do not have sidewalks and you are then putting the burden on the old part of town. "So, there is always a feeling tax department lacked basic internal accounting controls governing the recording and reporting of income tax activity. 'The department's system of filing tax returns was inadequate making it difficult to access information. ..We have issued a finding for recovery, citations and suggested that certain accounting and administrative controls be implemented." The state's look into the bookkeeping practices during the period under question reveals inconsisten 4t 1 r0' - fr f that you are unfairly enforcing a law." Jaworski said if a new ordinance is passed he will have to ask council for permission to hire an inspector to monitor the sidewalks. Council member Dave Rice said he will agree to put any discussions on hold for now, but there are several places in the city where public safety needs to be addressed. "For one, on Cleveland Avenue back by Maude Nciding Park where the trees overhang there is no visibilty when coming around those cies among accounting practices as well as improperly executed practices. The auditor examined three areas: tax receipts to determine whether monies collected were recorded correctly and deposited intact; income tax returns to determine whether individual returns were filled out properly and did not contain alterations; and the direct master listing to determine whether the computer-generated list accurately reflected the taxpayer's history. V 4 7 Vlf z , ..... if Hi it J ,t 3i.'1 $ Ml V 6 4S, '4 A '"riiiimirrV'iii'ffVirifm-iiT'ifii'ri'rrr -irf-wi-ii-" r - - . -'- i - - t - - -- -' - - turns until they arc there," he said. "And I work in a school building with 600 junior high school kids and there is not one sidewalk leading to it." But once the sidewalks are built those junior high school kids will have to watch what lime it is when they are out if a new curfew law is passed. Council member Joyce Mackin has introduced to council a pamphlet issed by the Walter H. Green Company, the company which codifies Amherst's ordinances, which Auditors reported th one day April 24, 19 amine tax receipts. On th found "two returns were reflect a tax credit which was not substantiated from the records available." Litkovitz requested the two taxpayers to produce a copy of their tax returns and receipt of payment. One document indicated a credit of $100 and a payment of $4.66; the other return showed a tax credit of $100 CONTINUED on page 2 V. x J$r 1 nit A . wi : i v ? . ,m -i i"9 ' $ 7 ' - .'.' - ,.-f .....f-.....,.-..:.--; CC depicts new laws in other cities and slates that were upheld by the court. One includes legislation passed in Dallas, Texas which forces parents to be responsible for their kids actions by issuing fines and penalties if a child is caught after curfew. Mackin said she liked the law because it makes parents be aware of where their kids are and what they arc doing on the streets. CONTINUED on page 3