ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, September 21, 1996 TAG: 9609230034
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: PULASKI
SOURCE: PAUL DELLINGER STAFF WRITER
Pulaski County's voter registrar was on the job as usual Friday, even though she has been charged with embezzling $1,721.46 in public funds.
The Sheriff's Office arrested Phyllis K. Hanks on Thursday afternoon. She was freed on an unsecured $10,000 bond, pending arraignment in General District Court at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 30.
Hanks said Friday she did not know whether she would have to step down from her job until the matter is resolved. Nobody has contacted her about it, she said.
"No comment," she said, as to the charges. "I have been advised not to say anything."
The arrest followed a Sheriff's Office investigation dating back several weeks. The results were turned over to Commonwealth's Attorney Everett Shockley.
The investigation began when the treasurer's office found that refund checks from Bell Atlantic had not been deposited to the registrar's office. Hanks is charged with depositing them to her personal account.
The checks were for the amounts of $1,641.36, $69.39 and $10.71. The amounts of the two smaller checks would normally make charges stemming from them misdemeanors rather than felonies, except that public funds are involved. As felonies, each charge carries a potential penalty of two to 10 years in prison.
Hanks, 39, has worked in the registrar's office for 11 years and as its chief for six years.
In Virginia, registrars are appointed by their local electoral boards. A.J. Smith Jr., chairman of the Pulaski County Electoral Board, said he was trying to find out what action should be taken from the state Board of Elections when the investigation into the checks became public knowledge earlier this month.
Smith was out of town Friday and not expected back to work at his accounting firm until Tuesday.
Bruce Meadows, secretary of the state Board of Elections, said Friday that any decision on suspending a registrar would be up to Pulaski County officials.
"The local electoral board who hired her would kind of have to work that out," he said. The only time the state might get involved would be if a registrar was actually convicted of a felony and it appeared that the local board had not reacted strongly enough.
With a presidential and congressional election coming up Nov. 5, this is a busy time for all registrars' offices. The only employees familiar with running the Pulaski County office are Hanks and one part-time assistant.
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