County poised to strip sheriff of towing authority
Post-Tribune
January 05, 2017
The Lake County Council moved forward with ordinances that strip authority over towing contracts from Sheriff John Buncich after allegations of his involvement in a kickback scheme with tow operators.
Councilmen David Hamm, D-Hammond, and Jamal Washington, D-Merrillville, introduced two ordinances Thursday in a council workshop: one that would strip power from the sheriff regarding towing matters and a second that would redirect any funds collected from towing the Sheriff's Department budget to the county.
The 2017 vehicle towing ordinance would give authority to award towing contracts to the Board of Commissioners instead of the sheriff, Washington said. A second ordinance would repeal and replace the sheriff's towing fee and towing company franchise fee non-reverting fund, where moneys collected from towing companies now go, and redirect those funds to the county's general fund.
Councilman Dan Dernulc, R-Highland, said the change is necessary to restore public confidence in how the county operates towing vehicles through the Sheriff's Department.
"We are trying to make sure the public, the residents have more confidence in what we are doing," Dernulc said. "The perception with the public is this is an issue. We have to get this issue resolved."
The county's move to take more control over the towing contracts follows allegations of corruption federal authorities leveled against Buncich and former Chief of Police Timothy Downs for taking bribes from tow operators.
Buncich, Downs and William Szarmach, of CSA Towing in Lake Station, were named in a multicount indictment alleging an illegal towing scheme in which the sheriff accepted bribes in the form of thousands of dollars in cash and donations to his campaign fund, Buncich's Boosters, according to court records. All three are facing charges of wire fraud, while Buncich and Szarmach also are charged with bribery.
Downs, in December, pleaded guilty and both Buncich and Szarmach pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Buncich said Thursday he had not seen the ordinance and declined to make a comment until he has had a chance to review the document.
"This is the first I heard about it," Buncich said.
Council attorney Ray Szarmach said the ordinances will bring the county back to the way towing was originally handled. When first approved 17 years ago, the towing ordinance gave the power to award towing contracts to the county commissioners. Over the years that changed and it was redirected to the sheriff. The council, at the request of the sheriff, created the non-reverting towing fund in 2011. Monies in that fund were used to pay for several officer positions.
Officials over the past two budget seasons have worked to move those positions out of the towing fund because the fund never generated the revenues expected. There is still at least one position being paid from that fund.
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Council President Ted Bilski, D-Hobart, said once the ordinances are approved, any bills being paid from the non-reverting towing fund would have to be paid from the general fund. He requested a list of those payments for Tuesday's meeting.
Bilski said moving forward the best option for the county may be creating a county-run tow operation with a county-owned impound yard somewhere on the government complex in Crown Point. The operation could possibly be run through the Highway Department.
Washington agreed and said officials should take steps to conduct a feasibility study on what it would take in staffing and funds for the county to do its own towing.
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