Butler Co. auditor sentenced to jail in corruption case
A former Butler County auditor was sentenced to jail for a guilty verdict in a corruption case Friday.
Roger Reynolds, a now former Butler County auditor, was sentenced to 30 days of incarceration in the county jail, five years of community control (or also known as probation), $5,000 fine in addition to court costs, and 100 hours of community service or full-time employment.
Reynolds was also terminated as a Butler County auditor after being found guilty, back in December, of a felony charge to the fourth degree of having an unlawful interest in a public contract.
He was, however, acquitted on three other felony charges that included bribery and one misdemeanor charge.
Reynolds faced these charges after he influenced the Lakota Local Schools treasurer to expand the indoor golf training facility by partnering up with a private company, Four Bridges Golf Club. He suggested that the district schools expand using the hundreds of thousands of dollars of tax money they receive from the auditor’s office.
Reynolds attempt to influence the use of tax money for a public contract was found illegal due to his vested interests while a county auditor.
During the time, he was a member of Four Bridges Golf Club. His daughter also played for the Lakota East High School golf team, Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones informed.
“While I am disappointed in this sentenced, I am gratified that the court recognized this abuse of public trust warrants at least some jail time,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said. “Every public servant should remember Dave’s rule of ethics: the only benefit you get from your public service is a paycheck and a sense of a job well done.”
The case was prosecuted by the Special Prosecutions Section of the Attorney General’s Office and investigated by the Butler County Sheriff’s Office, Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and the Ohio Ethics Commission, a spokesperson for Yost’s office wrote.
