Chaffee officials say they didn't vote on money probe

~ Police questioned a court clerk after $1,000 was discovered missing.

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Some members of the Chaffee City Council want to let their constituents know they didn't engage in back-room deals to stop an investigation of a former court clerk and some missing money.

Three council members -- Debbie Eichhorn, Ward 2; Wayne Hampton, Ward 1; and Mike Jobe, Ward 3 -- sent out a letter Friday saying "that as council members of the City of Chaffee we did not have a vote on whether the investigation into the missing money was continued or stopped.

"We feel that the state patrol should have continued their investigation into this matter and their report sent to the proper authorities to decide if there was a crime committed."

The letter goes on to state the council members were unaware of who made the decision to stop the investigation.

At issue was the status of $1,000 missing from the city court. The missing money was discovered sometime in January, and police questioned court clerk Robin Dannenmueller.

On Jan. 17, a day after questioning, Dannenmueller deposited $1,000 into the court funds. She then resigned on Jan. 20.

The same day as the deposit, Chaffee police chief Jeff Womack requested an investigation into the missing funds by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

"Before the investigation started she had paid back the $1,000 and got the money back to where it goes," Womack said. "In doing that, she indicated she would resign and it became an internal matter."

Attempts to contact Mayor Bill Cannon on Friday were unsuccessful.

Council members didn't find out about the missing money and subsequent resignation until last Monday's council meeting, three days after Dannenmueller resigned.

Jobe, who is up for re-election, said he wants to make it clear that a "good old boys" club isn't at work, since Dannenmueller is the daughter of councilman Bob Sullivan. Sullivan didn't return calls Friday.

"Like any kind of government I think everything should be up front and open for people to know about any decisions," Jobe said. "I want to be accountable."

Womack said the decision to stop the investigation was made on the basis that the money had been returned, the facts of the case were clear and law enforcement didn't need to waste any more resources.

"She had already given the money back. ... She had already resigned, and we weren't going to put any more time and effort into this thing," Womack said.

Jobe said Womack has done a great job handling the situation. However, he wishes the council would have been informed about the missing money when it was discovered.

Some council members who didn't sign the letter, Leon "Lum" Stricklin, Tom Cunningham and Jack Nordin, said they needed to see more evidence before they would comment on administration actions.

msanders@semissourian.com

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