Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 27, 1995 TAG: 9504270059
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KIMBERLY N. MARTIN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Salem City Councilman Garry Lautenschlager is the only link between the two.
Lautenschlager is executive director of the Western EMS Council, where he has worked for almost13 years. In the rescue squad, he was the only member who signed the checks in question.
Lautenschlager has been suspended from the rescue squad until it conducts its own investigation. He is on voluntary, paid leave from the EMS Council until May 12, said David Laurrell, treasurer of the board that oversees the council.
The board began scrutinizing its books after allegations surfaced regarding the appropriate use of the council's funds.
That audit, which is ongoing, found that no money was missing, but raised concerns about the handling of some transactions.
"We came across some questions about the use of council resources, and upon the advice of counsel we took the information to the commonwealth's attorney," Laurrell said. "There's a couple of different scenarios that could be happening here. We thought there could be a connection with an ongoing investigation or there could be a stand-alone issue."
Both attorneys agreed that the next step for the board was to turn over the information to the state police.
"They couldn't accept it without attorney general approval, and they got the approval earlier this week," Laurrell said.
However, he declined to disclose any further details of the investigation.
The council, which is funded through the state, United Way and local governments, coordinates advanced life-support training and other support services for emergency medical service organizations in the Fourth, Fifth and 12th Planning districts, which extend from Montgomery County east to Pittsylvania County and as far north as Alleghany County.
Although annual audits long have been a practice of the board, other basic accounting principles have not, Laurrell said.
Just 18 months ago the board instituted a two-signature policy on all checks, and adopted a system of checks and balances. In the past, one person could receive a bill, approve it, have a check cut to pay it, then sign the check. Now, several people are involved in the process.
"The questions that occurred happened prior to the financial controls. We don't have any questions on what's happening now," Laurrell said.
The councilman was unavailable for comment, but his attorney, Jack Gregory, said Lautenschlager "is confident that when it's completed that it will show no wrongdoing. We're cooperating fully" with the state police's investigation.
The state police's first inquiry was into the Salem squad's Wiley Fund, an account set up in memory of paramedic David Wiley. The fund started with about $20,000 in 1986 to be spent on volunteers' education, but only a few scholarships were given.
Members of the board who oversaw the fund thought it was a dormant account, but a couple of months ago when they looked at the books, they realized it wasn't. Money was being withdrawn and deposited regularly. Lawyers have said at least $2,000 is unaccounted for.
Lautenschlager, who was a member of the squad for 23 years and a member of the Wiley board, was the only board member with an authorized signature on the fund's checking account.
He has said he used the money for training supplies and material and replaced it with fees from classes.
Pittsylvania County Commonwealth's attorney David Grimes, who was asked to be the special prosecutor in the case, said he has not received any information from the state police regarding the investigation.
by CNB