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Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Ind. Gov't. - "IPS Board member says he will resign over felony"

Andy Garnmill of the Indianapolis Star reports today:

An Indianapolis Public School Board member said Tuesday that he would resign after The Indianapolis Star raised questions about his 2005 drunken-driving conviction, a felony that should have disqualified him from office.

Longtime board member W. Donald Payton pleaded guilty to a felony charge of drunken driving in November, five months after he was arrested on the Eastside after making a U-turn and hitting a car. He was found to have a blood-alcohol reading three times the level at which a driver is considered drunk in Indiana. It was his third conviction in 11 years.

Indiana law bars felons from holding office and requires them to step down once convicted. Failing to do so carries no criminal penalties, and it is up to the official to report the conviction.

Payton said he did not know the law required him to step down.

"I'm going to resign from the board now that I'm aware of it," Payton said by telephone Tuesday. "I'm going to do the right thing. I take full ownership."
He thought the conviction would not be a problem, he said, because the felony eventually would be wiped from his record if he meets all the requirements of his probation. * * *

Once Payton resigns this week, the School Board will accept applications for a replacement and interview candidates to fill out the remaining two years of his term, said President Clarke C. Campbell.

Campbell, who also is a Marion County deputy prosecutor, said he learned about the conviction when The Star contacted him Tuesday. He then called Payton and explained the law to him.

"From the board's perspective, I'm shocked and disappointed," Campbell said. "I feel on the board's behalf that we should have been advised by Mr. Payton on this issue."

See this ILB entry from Jan. 14, 2005, which discusses the "person who is a convicted felon prior to become a candidate for elected office or assuming office and a person who becomes a convicted felon during his term of office."

Posted by Marcia Oddi on October 4, 2006 06:55 AM
Posted to Indiana Government | Indiana Law