Convicted County Commissioner given county job

SULLIVAN COUNTY, Ind. (WTHI) - A former Wabash Valley county commissioner convicted of using tax-payer money for himself has been getting more money from tax-payers. This time legally.

For the last three weeks, former Sullivan County Commissioner Carter Phegley has been hired part-time to mow alongside county roads to keep the dust down for school buses.

The name may seem familiar. Phegley served as a County Commissioner for more than 16 years.

Just over a year ago, Phegley faced two counts of official misconduct from when he was a County Commissioner. Investigators said he used highway department employees to make improvements at his home.

He agreed to a plea deal in June 2009, which included paying back more than $1,300 to the county.

Since August 17, Phegley has been getting a paycheck from the exact same highway department.

The man who hired him, Commissioner Tim Abrams, refused to go on camera. Abrams told News 10 he didn't think hiring Phegley would be an issue and that he checked with the county attorney first.

But when we posed the situation on Facebook, overwhelmingly, you disagreed with the hiring decision.

"Any employee that has been fired by ANY COMPANY would NEVER get hired back if it's due to theft," said Eric Plascak.

"I DO NOT WANT MY TAX DOLLARS GOING TO HIM!!!!!" said Luke Renick.

Renick is getting his wish.

After News 10 contacted Abrams, the Commissioner decided to let Phegley go at the end of the day, terminating his employment after 16 days.

Abrams said he didn't want to bring any more embarrassment to the Phegley family. Abrams said Phegley would have only had the job for another couple weeks, until the first freeze helped cut down on the dust.

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