“I think it has taken years,” Haller said of the investigation. “We’re talking four or five years.”
In April, Haller said he met with David Freel, director of the Ohio Ethics Commission. In that meeting, the commission told Haller there may be criminal charges.
“What they shared with me was enough that I knew that I had to get a special prosecutor,” Haller said. “The allegations were serious enough that it would likely go forward.”
A message for comment at Schmidt’s office was not immediately returned.
The filing states that the appointment of special prosecutors is to avoid a conflict of interest and the appearance of impropriety “because the prosecutor is both acquainted with and statutory counsel to the Treasurer.”
Haller said the next step is for a visiting judge to be assigned.
Schmidt is married to Suzanne Schmidt, the first assistant county prosecuting attorney. Haller said Suzanne Schmidt’s duties will not change, and that she was not implicated.
James W. Schmidt has been the county’s treasurer since 1983 and began in that office in 1975. His duties include collecting $200 million in taxes and investing $90 million annually, according to the county’s website.
He has a private law practice, is a Realtor, a certified public accountant and an Army veteran who served during the Vietnam War.
According to the county website, Schmidt is also: past president of the County Treasurers Association of Ohio; a member of the Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants; a past president of the Greene County Bar Association; a Greene County Fish and Game Association member; a Greene County Historical Society member and Treasurer of the Greene County Republican Central Committee.
The Ohio Ethics Commission website says its mission is:
“The Ohio Ethics Commission promotes ethics in public service to strengthen the public’s confidence that Government business is conducted with impartiality and integrity. The Commission has jurisdiction over Ohio’s public officials and employees at the state and local levels of government, except legislators, judges, and their staffs.”
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