Blase, Blackwood charged

Misdemeanor charges of official misconduct have been filed against Jan Blase and Robert Blackwood.

Both Blase, 56, the suspended city manager, and Blackwood, 60, the city’s former finance director, have been charged with the Class A misdemeanor. The charges were filed Wednesday afternoon by Jake Skouby, Newton County prosecutor.

“Our investigation is now complete,” Newton County Sheriff Ken Copeland said. “Per the direction of the prosecutor, we checked into that one allegation and that’s as far as the investigation went.”

According to a probable cause affidavit filed by Randall Scott, a detective with the Newton County Sheriff’s Department, on or about Sept. 30, Blase authorized the transfer of $204,666 from the city’s hotel / motel tax fund into the general fund to pay expenses of the city of Neosho.

Blackwood, the affidavit alleges, committed official misconduct by making the fund transfer.
According to language contained in the Aug. 8, 2006, election ballot, funds from the motel / hotel tax are for the “sole purpose of promoting tourism.”

The ballot language reads as follows: “Shall the city of Neosho impose a tax on the charges for all sleeping rooms paid by the transient guests of hotels, motels and tourist courts situated in the city of Neosho at a rate of four percent for the sole purpose of promoting tourism?”
The hotel / motel tax passed by a 2-1 margin — 628 votes for, 300 against — during the Aug. 8, 2006, primary election. In a story published the following day in the Neosho Daily News, it was noted money generated from the 4 percent tax would be used to promote the city through different marketing efforts, including billboards, Web pages and print and electronic advertising.

“According to Robert Blackwood, Neosho City Finance Director, he and Blase discussed the option of using money from the hotel / motel tax fund,” Scott wrote in the affidavit. “Blackwood said he was told by Blase to transfer the money from the hotel / motel tax fund into a general fund.”
The fund transfer occurred at or just before the end of fiscal year 2009. City fiscal years run from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30. A total of $611,900 was transferred from the “bed tax” fund, the tax increment finance fund and from the water and wastewater fund, Blackwood previously told the Daily News.
Blase did not return a call to his cell phone for comment Thursday morning, and has not returned calls left by the Daily News since late January, when the council voted unanimously to suspend Blase from his post as city manager. Blase has filed a request for what essentially is an appeals hearing, but a date has not been set.

Likewise, Blackwood could not be reached for comment Thursday morning. A telephone call to his home was disconnected after ringing four times. However, in an interview Wednesday with Fox 14 News, Blackwood said it would have been more unethical to tell a city worker or vendor that they would not be paid than to make the fund transfer.

In a “city manager’s newsletter,” e-mailed to the Daily News on Jan. 26, the day Blase was notified of the council’s decision by Neosho Mayor Jeff Werneke, Blase termed the investigation into official misconduct “character assassination.”

“These efforts at character assassination are a concerted effort to disrupt the local government process by creating chaos and sowing seeds of doubt,” he said. “It is clear who is behind these efforts. The efforts to tarnish my reputation are intended to make it difficult to perform the statutory duties required of the city manager as spelled out in the city charter. The motives behind these efforts are not so clear. But I suspect they have to do with gaining power and personally benefiting from the chaos.”

Blase did not name who he thought was behind the efforts.

In a prepared statement, Werneke said the council was aware charges were filed as a result of the investigation.

“Although charges have been filed, we respect the fact that these individuals are innocent until proven guilty,” Werneke said in the statement. “As with the investigation phase of this issue, the city of Neosho will cooperate fully to provide information required to resolve the situation. The city of Neosho will also remain neutral in passing judgment and allow the judicial system to perform its function.

“In consideration that this is a case between the Newton County Prosecutor and these two individuals, it would be inappropriate for the city council or any member of the city administration to make any further comment that might affect its outcome.”

The investigation came as a result of a complaint filed by Richard Davidson, Neosho mayor pro tem, on Jan. 22. Davidson declined to comment Thursday morning, but previously told the Daily News he was concerned about using money from the hotel / motel tax fund to make city payroll and other city obligations, when ballot language stated the sole purpose of the “bed tax” would be to promote tourism.

A Class A misdemeanor is punishable by up to a year in the county jail and a $1,000 fine.
Blase and Blackwood are scheduled to be arraigned at 8:30 a.m. Feb. 22 before Newton County Division 2 Associate Circuit Court Judge Greg Stremel.