Shocker: Grand jury indicts Dekalb ex-Superintendent Crawford Lewis on six counts
Updated at 10:30 p.m. Wednesday
A DeKalb grand jury just indicted former Superintendent Crawford Lewis over irregularities in the state’s third-largest school system’s massive construction program. Indictments were also handed down on Pat Reid, who oversaw construction for the county until she fell from grace from alleged conflicts of interest and sweetheart deals to companies with which her then-husband had ties.
A DeKalb grand jury indicted former school Superintendent Crawford Lewis today on six counts
While Lewis did not have a strong vision for DeKalb’s changing school landscape, I did not expect a six-count indictment. A 33-year veteran of the DeKalb district, Lewis has yet to have his day in court, but I am stunned to see him indicted for racketeering (RICO) charges, theft by a government employee and bribery.
After reading the indictments, it seems to me that Lewis is alleged to have risked his career and his reputation for fairly modest gains, including Masters tickets and free hotel rooms.
According to the breaking news story now in the AJC:
Lewis was indicted on racketeering and other charges, school board Chairman Tom Bowen told the AJC. Former schools chief operating officer Patricia Reid, also known as Pat Pope, was also indicted, along with Reid’s secretary and Reid’s former husband Tony Pope, Bowen said.
District Attorney Gwen Keyes Fleming announced the indictments at 4:30 p.m.
Lewis faces six counts: four racketeering (RICO) charges , theft by a government employee and bribery.
Patricia Reid faces seven counts: four racketeering charges, theft by a government employee, bribery, false public document
Tony Pope and secretary Cointa Moody each face four RICO counts.
Lewis did not immediately respond to a voicemail left at his home.
Tony Pope’s attorney Calvin Leipold also could not be reached for comment at his law office.
Pat Reid did not immediately return a message left on her cell phone Wednesday afternoon.
Here are the charges:
- Four counts of violating the racketeer influenced and corruption act against Lewis, Reid, Pope and Moody.
- One count of theft by a government employee against Lewis and Reid.
- One count of bribery against Lewis and Reid.
- One count of falsifying public documents against Reid.
Lewis, 56, faces a maximum of 105 years in prison. Reid, also 52, faces up to 115 years in prison, investigators said.
Lewis did not return a message left at his home. His attorney denied the accusations.
“We are disappointed that the district attorney has brought these charges. They are wrong,” attorney Mike Brown told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Dr. Lewis has not committed any crimes. And we are going to fight really, really hard to prove that.”
According to investigators, the scheme had begun in 2006 and involved the three school officials concealing information from the school board, altering documents and giving work to Pope’s architectural firm.
“All of the parties used their positions and the resources of school system to facilitate theft, fraud and obstruction, whether for personal gain or for the benefit of others,” Fleming said. “The money received by Tony Pope was then funneled to Pat Pope.”
Lewis, who was terminated last month, hired Reid as chief operating officer in October 2005 to run the school district’s multi-million-dollar school construction program. At the time, Reid and Pope were still married
When she was hired, the couple was told he could complete one on-going school construction contract but could not work on any additional school projects, Fleming said.
But Lewis and Reid ignored that stipulation, the indictment alleges. The two, along with secretary Moody, 48, conspired to get Pope contracts. This was accomplished by issuing illegal change orders, altering construction projects and leaking information to Pope, all behind the school board’s back, Fleming said.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
219 comments Add your comment
Ken
May 26th, 2010
7:15 pm
Thank you Dr. Trotter… All the people Dr. Lewis hired over the last few years need to leave Dekalb Schools NOW. Dr. Lewis hired a lot of his friends at DeKalb Schools. Run now you are next out the door.
Ken
May 26th, 2010
7:21 pm
Dr. Lewis golf friends who where hired at DeKalb Schools leave now. Dr. Lewis was not the only corrupt person at DeKalb. Many employees were buillied in the work place by Dr. Lewis so called friends. Check into this….. This is the truth of the matter.
Where is Rev. Jackson?
May 26th, 2010
7:24 pm
Oh no, another black man headed for prison.
Right Here
May 26th, 2010
7:25 pm
Dr. John Trotter is a major reason why the Clayton County school system lost its accreditation. Please stay out of DeKalb Trotter!!!
GAmom
May 26th, 2010
7:25 pm
Keith is the typical racist; he likes to hide from facts. There are nearly 700 Black mayors in this country. I can assure you that all 700 are not failing. Poor leadership is poor leadership. We’ve had our share of white leaders that were not good. But, that says nothing about white people or whites as leaders.
Dave
May 26th, 2010
7:29 pm
Dr. John, you have a first for me, what appears to be a copyright claim for a comment. AJC folks, can we do that? I get a tenth of a cent or so for every click to a piece I comment on? Cool. I can see some nice retirement money coming.
stan
May 26th, 2010
7:29 pm
It Is unfortunate. As a former school board member elsewhere,I understand him.Probably
rides in an Escalade, begins talking on the phone as soon as he gets in it, about nothing,
that we pay for, then hides through the phone, and is absent tending to his business,But
tending to his Conn stit-u Wants. Not White.
HS Teacher
May 26th, 2010
7:32 pm
The foxes are running the hen house. There is absolutely no oversight for school system administration. They run amuck. It is not solely in DeKalb, it is all over GA.
The only hope is for GA state law to be changed to allow for a legal teacher union. The union can then help to prevent abuses such as this and be the watch dog for real education in GA.
tim
May 26th, 2010
7:34 pm
You are shocked Ms Downey? Crawford Lewis was low enough to steal gas!
Is the DeKalb Co government, sheriff, schools etc. EVER going to get it together?.
Time to clean house in many departments!
PATHETIC
SallyB
May 26th, 2010
7:40 pm
Poor Crawford Clueless ! Actually, the DC School Board can share the blame for this fiasco. Here’s hoping that the voters in Dekalb will oust the entire cunning wimps that sit on the DC board . You know, DCSS administrative officeis…..actually a “Good Ol’ Boy” culture …….albeit not the usual make up of such a group.
Relatives, friends and golf buddies, suck-ups and those whot can be manipulated , as well as those who cannot function in the classroom or school building, are roaming Building A and B on N. Decatur Rd. making decisions and policies . This mess was so predictable. In case you’re wondering…..I was there for 33 years and am glad to be watching from the sidelines now.
SallyB
May 26th, 2010
7:41 pm
What’s with that filter and SallyB?
There's an old saying
May 26th, 2010
7:43 pm
There’s an old saying, “It’s hard to get rich in a small town because everyone is watching.” We in DeKalb haven’t been watching carefully enough. We haven’t asked the right questions. We need new management at DCSS. A good national search should help us find the kind of leadership we need to fix this problem. I’m not interested in race. I’m interested in credentials and experience. The State of Georgia could help us by dividing this overly large school system into several smaller school systems. Part of the problem is that this school system is way too big.
redweather
May 26th, 2010
7:53 pm
I suspect that everyone indicted today will be given an opportunity to implicate other members of the DCSS who had a role in this. Could prove to be quite interesting.
Dr. John Trotter
May 26th, 2010
7:55 pm
Hey “Right Here” (and all of the other names which you courageously and anonymously use): I have never served on the Clayton County Board of Education nor have I ever cast one vote. Sorry. But, I did help several people through years get elected to that school board — but helped others get get elected outside of Clayton County (school board, legislature, etc.) as well. In Clayton, I have helped folk get elected to the commission (yes, even Chairman), legislature, judiciary, and school board. I suppose that I am the blame for any judicial decision, etc., made in Georgia. Ha! Not only in Clayton but elsewhere. Yes, “Right Here,” I am the ultimate heel, the evil Omnipotent Ruler of the World! Boo! Now go hide back under your anonymous rock.
elsieyes
May 26th, 2010
8:06 pm
Irrogance never wins. Many times I experienced an arrogant spirit after dealing with this superintendent. He was not caring unless you were in his group. There are two more Dr. JW- a man, AND Dr. T. Smith a woman-she use to work at Avondale Middle, both are still there. They will miss him because he favored them dearly. God doesn’t like a proud spirit.
Right here right now
May 26th, 2010
8:20 pm
Is Dr. Trotter the President of GAE? The Clayton County Board of Education that was blamed for the loss of accreditation was lead by a GAE majority voting block at the time it was investigated, so I guess if Dr. Trotter is the head of GAE, then it makes sense to blame the head of GAE, since it was a GAE majority school board that lost the accreditation.
Now I can’t recall if Dr. Trotter is the head of GAE or not, but one thing I do recall is that long before the AJC was paying any attention to Crawford Lewis, Dr. Trotter was calling him an educational fraud whose incompetence would have a negative impact on DeKalb County.
Dekalb Teacher
May 26th, 2010
8:27 pm
First, no it is not a shocker. It is refreshing to know that the crook and his cronies have been indicted. Second, I hope that Crawford talks his head off in hopes of good favor and more of the sorry DCSS leaders get what they deserve. Hopefully, he will still get his move from the mansion to the cell. He has never been about the students, only about Crawford. Third, I hope the BOE has enough sense to decide not to continue to pay his legal expenses. Of course, they all aren’t playing with a full deck either if they thought he deserved a raise and a bigger expense account. In 2009 he received $287,991 salary and $9,452 travel expenses. See http://www.open.georgia.gov
Ask them
May 26th, 2010
8:30 pm
Ask the BOE each and every time you see them: You actually gave a raise to a man now under criminal indictment? And you want people to re-elect you?
John
May 26th, 2010
8:33 pm
This is exactly what the editors wanted. A ridiculous opinion piece by an author who clearly has no knowledge of the current situation or the events that have unfolded over the past 2 years.
Nonsense articles such as these serve one purpose, to stir the pudding. If you can annoy enough people you are bound to get plenty of comments and people coming back to check responses to their comments. It’s about website “hits” and advertising revenue.
You are a joke Maureen. How does it feel to be nothing more than the editor’s puppet.
You wouldn’t even be hired by the New York Times with such poorly researched opinion pieces…and that’s saying something!
Shocker: The Earth is round! Shocker: Crawford indicted!
May 26th, 2010
8:34 pm
Maureen, out of curiosity, have you talked to any other humans on planet Earth who expressed shock at the indictment?
Maureen Downey
May 26th, 2010
8:41 pm
@Shocker, Actually, I have. Quite a few people were surprised at the six counts and the nature of them.
Maureen
SallyB
May 26th, 2010
8:42 pm
DR. TROTTER: You cannot be serious about Jim Williams for superintendent !!!!
Carrying on a blatant affair, well known to all the personnel at the DCSS county office as well as outlying school personnel. We can surely do better!!!!
Maureen Downey
May 26th, 2010
8:50 pm
@John, I have no idea what you are trying to say. I can give you the names of all my editors. I don’t think you will find a single one who would describe me as puppet material. (By the way, for better or worse, editors don’t vet the blog before I publish it. )
And it is no secret that the whole point of a blogs is to spur comments and opinions or, as you put it, “stir the pudding.”
I also want to point out that an indictment is not a conviction.
Maureen
Maureen Downey
May 26th, 2010
8:54 pm
@tim, There is a big difference between abusing a gas card — which I suspect is routine in state government and which is why I oppose gas cards, credit cards, etc. — and taking a bribe.
I have found that many employees – public and private — rationalize taking home copy paper or filling up their personal car as payback for all the extra hours they put into the job. I am never surprised at those abuses.
However, taking a bribe is a different level of criminality.
Maureen
Retired from DeKalb
May 26th, 2010
8:56 pm
I think Crawford is clueless. He merely signed what was shoved in front of him, but that doesn’t rid him of any blame. Now he should have to sleep in the bed that he helped make. He was simply not qualified to take over for the last crook that held the superintendent’s position in DeKalb. Pat Pope saw a way to keep the contracts in her own pocket by helping to award them to her then husband’s firm and she was arrogant enough to think she could get away with it. I know Crawford and I have always thought him to be an honest man. I think he was just a bit too trusting. I hope I’m not wrong about him and I hope the truth will come out.
King & Spalding
May 26th, 2010
8:58 pm
What just happened to our case against Heery? What about our contingency fee? Boo hoo hoo!!!
Former DeKalb Employee
May 26th, 2010
9:11 pm
I agree with “This Is A Fact” in that Ronald Ramsey should most definitely be the next to go! He’s been a crook with no ethics since his days of running his daycare center, Children for Christ. Puhlease!!!!!!
Gee
May 26th, 2010
9:14 pm
Dr. Jim Williams would make a wonderful superintendent. I was so disappointed when he was overlooked this last time.
DeKalb Parent
May 26th, 2010
9:15 pm
Maureen, I did not see a copy of the indictment posted on the AJC blog, but being a criminal defense lawyer would be interested in reading it. Based on the search warrant, I expected that the DA was chasing down possible illegal gratuities, i.e. gifts from contractors and other vendors in return for favorable treatment. While this is common, Lewis should have known this was illegal. This is why the DeKalb County Schools and all other school systems need a strong ethics code for both employees and BOE members.
The misuse of the purchasing card was already known (i.e. Gas Gate) and so was the below market price for the car. I presume the DA threw this in for an easy conviction on some minor counts. Standing alone, I doubt the DA would have ever charged them.
I am a bit surprised by the racketeering counts as these require more complex proof of a pattern of illegal conduct.
John
May 26th, 2010
9:16 pm
Maureen, obviously an indictment is not a conviction. They are innocent until proven guilty. However, do you really think a Grand Jury would have indicted them without solid evidence? Do you think the DA would have put her career on the line without an air tight case? This is going to be a highly public trial and an innocent verdict would be a huge black eye for the DA’s office. I simply find it hard to believe that you are genuinely shocked by this news considering you are aware of all the events that have taken place over the past 2 years.
Are you not aware of the gas card fiasco and Lewis’ pathetically ridiculous excuse for filling up 3 times in one day? Do you honestly believe that he siphoned out premium gas and refilled with regular unleaded because he thought it would damage the vehicle?
If this is truly your opinion and not an attempt to get website “hits” on this page, I would love to sell you some beautiful oceanfront property just down the road from Piedmont Park.
more graft
May 26th, 2010
9:25 pm
Someone should look into the contracts for closed circuit television contracts, security systems, etc…same equipment installed multiple times??? Different companies selling the equipment, but the same people own both companies. Lots of stuff going on here!!
Dekalb County taxpayer
May 26th, 2010
9:28 pm
I too find it hard to believe that Ms. Downey was shocked by the six-count indictment. Perhaps a lot of employees do misuse gas cards. And if Lewis had just admitted fault when he was caught obviously filling up personal vehicles on a County-issued card, it might have ended there. But his outrageous story about siphoning the gas and replacing it showed a deeper level of moral failure and an amazing level of stupidity for someone in his position.
Momof2
May 26th, 2010
9:38 pm
I am appalled, and somehow I think there would be merit in the DAs expanding this out to more of the Lewis cronies. So – how to get the DAs office to continue?
It’s bad enough having to pay taxes, but to have the tax money taken for personal gain is worse. Throw the book at them!
SallyB
May 26th, 2010
9:39 pm
@Retired from Dekalb @8:56 :
Definitely correct about Clueless. Someone or several someones were shoving the papers at him for his signature and I’ll bet he doesn’t yet know what hit him !
And you are so right that he wasn’t qualified to be superintendent….he just simply didn’t have the acumen and/or the ability to handle all the duplicity and cunning that permeates the DCSS…and for that the blame sits firmly on the shoulders of the DCSS school board.
SallyB
May 26th, 2010
9:44 pm
Doesn’t that story he concocted about siphoning the gas, etc. scream that he is not the sharpest knife in the drawer? I actually liked him as a colleague and hope he was just ignorant.
dawgma
May 26th, 2010
9:48 pm
As a retired Dekalb County Principal – this is sickening but not unexpected. We have taken the best school district in the Southeast and turned it into a racist (black only), mismanaged, quota based, pile of dung.
These guys all knew they were cheating , lying, and stealing. In my 30 years in the school biz I never had free cars, free trips, or free money in my bank account.
Throw them under the jail – along with the corrupt vendors.
HStchr
May 26th, 2010
9:50 pm
Trotter giving advice about a superintendent??!!! Thanks- I needed the laugh!!! considering your history of support for BOE members that screwed up Clayton county and caused the best teachers to flee the system, it gets even funnier. Stop!!! My sides are hurting!!!!
anon
May 26th, 2010
9:55 pm
I hope they crucify every last person involved.
Maureen Downey
May 26th, 2010
9:57 pm
@John, As someone once assigned to cover courts, I have to tell you that grand jury indictments don’t always result in convictions. And district attorneys do lose cases that they believed they would win.
I am aware of Dr. Lewis’ utterly implausible defense of the triple gas-tank filling. It was insane. I said so at the time.
However, I did not see him as someone who would take bribes or be charged with racketeering.
In about a year, we’ll see if a jury does.
Maureen
Right Here
May 26th, 2010
10:03 pm
Good coverage of it here:
http://www.atlantaunfiltered.com/2010/05/26/grand-jury-indicts-2-top-dekalb-school-officials/
Crooks Rule
May 26th, 2010
10:08 pm
fulton and dekalk county gov’t and school systems are filled with a bunch of crooks, on the take from every lobbyist in town. They’ve stolen so much money over the years, there’s little left for anything needed. The town is a disgrace.
George Bernard Shaw
May 26th, 2010
10:09 pm
“Power does not corrupt men; fools, however, if they get into a position of power, corrupt power.”
helpful hannah
May 26th, 2010
10:19 pm
127 page indictment here:
http://www.11alive.com/news/pdf/Indictment%20_10CR2861.pdf
drew (former teacher)
May 26th, 2010
10:22 pm
John, stop being such a dick, and learn what a blog is.
Dumbass.
helpful hannah
May 26th, 2010
10:23 pm
I question Ron Ramsey’s acquiescence to Crawford’s telling him to forward all subpoenas from DA to Pat Reid/Pope. She was the target of the investigation, for Pete’s sake – if Ron thinks it’s OK to send them to her, does he belong in the legislature representing ANYBODY?
Justathought
May 26th, 2010
10:28 pm
Maureen: $50K+ in free tickets (Masters, ballgames, Mayor’s luncheon etc) presumably from a single source (or connected thereto) is excessive as a “thank you”, my interpretation is : here’s a bribe.
msbssy
May 26th, 2010
10:30 pm
@ Cobb mom, I used to work for one of the largest GC’s in the SE and if you all major contracts are going to minority firms you are sadly mistaken. I’ve seen mulit-million dollar contracts that are supposed to be for MBE ’s go to firms owned & managed by white men that use their wives as cover— so the door swings both way when it comes to these contracts. The sad part is contracting as a whole is all about who you know and how often you golf with the project managers that are asking for bids
SallyB
May 26th, 2010
10:48 pm
It’s about that secretary, Ms. Moody, receiving $43,000 in overtime pay!!! OMG, as a teacher in Dekalb for 32 years who worked overtime every single day and at home at night… I never once received overtime pay. And OMG #2….Many teachers don’t even make $43,000 as fulltime teachers.
insidedive22
May 26th, 2010
10:57 pm
Dr. JW and his many conquests(women), may have to find somewhere else to have their liasons.
Tweets that mention Shocker: Grand jury indicts Dekalb ex-Superintendent Crawford Lewis on six counts | Get Schooled -- Topsy.com
May 26th, 2010
11:01 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by cc wilder, Tom Johnson. Tom Johnson said: Shocker: Grand jury indicts Dekalb ex-Superintendent Crawford Lewis: Former schools chief operating officer Patric… http://bit.ly/9mTa3p [...]