A leaked memorandum from Hancock County State’s Attorney Jason Pohren to members of the Hancock County Board found its way to the internet in the past week, putting more pressure on county leaders to resolve an already contentious situation.

The “Edgar County Watchdogs,” along with Illinois Leaks, posted the confidential memorandum to its website last week under the headline “County Board Member Lies to State’s Attorney.” In the memorandum, dated April 20 and emailed from an outside party to the Journal-Pilot editor May 6, Pohren noted a “significant discrepancy” between two board members in estimated costs for projects at the ambulance facility in Carthage, but did not accuse any board members of dishonesty.

Pohren ended the memo by stating, “the purpose of this correspondence is not to question whether the projects were in the best interest of the county or whether an emergency existed. The purpose of this memorandum is also not to question the contractors chosen.

“It is imperative that all board members have knowledge of what occurred here so that they may make a reasoned and informed decision on how to proceed at this point.”

Electrical and plumbing issues had caused problems for medical teams that keep part-time residence at the ambulance building while on duty. In an attempt to correct the issues, board members Dave Walker and Marc Huston had been working with interim EMS coordinator Tyler Wilson on contracting repairs.

By law, projects over $30,000 must be bid on. Huston projected costs to be $40,000 while Walker projected them at $5,000. After a discussion with Wilson, Pohren itemized already completed projects at the facility at $39,916.70. Other projects that had been started or approved, but not yet completed totaled $47,406.25.

With various projects going on for corrective purposes at the ambulance facility, it was indicated to Pohren the projects should be considered separate for the purpose of competitive bidding. Because of the nature of the work taking place at the same time, the intent of the law would be for the project to be bid as a whole. To get the repairs done the board could have called for an emergency meeting to approve the work, but the motion was not made. The board eventually had a meeting to discuss the problems, but the work had been done and the situation could not retroactively be declared an emergency.

“It’s very complex,” said county board president Cary Gray. “The intent was good, but protocol was not followed.”

The procedural missteps put the county in an awful legal position according to Pohren. In the memo it was determined the county entered into contracts with contractors; the county is exposed to a suit for failure to engage in competitive bidding; the work completed at the ambulance barn is completed and needs to be paid for; if willful and wanton disregard of the competitive bidding statute is found, punitive damages would not be covered by the board’s liability insurance policy.

“We are still searching for the facts,” Gray stated. “We owe the voters to do all we can to find out what happened. It’s our responsibility to get to the bottom of this, but right now we don’t have enough facts to proceed with anything at the moment.

“We hope to have more information by the next board meeting.”

The next regularly scheduled county board meeting is May 19, but the board is already coming together to proceed with improvements at the ambulance building. On Monday, May 11, the board gathered at the facility to find the best way possible to make the necessary improvements for the people who work and stay there.