East Central Reporter

Edgar County Watchdog is calling for the resignation of Edgar County Sheriff Jeff Wood over his involvement in a widening scandal where an underling in his office is accused of padding payroll and spending time on work that was not in her job description while she was still on the clock.

“All officers and employees of public bodies are bound to comply with the law, including accurate payroll,” Edgar County Watchdog posted on its website. “No public employer may gift away public time or money to employees for any reason–-this includes bonuses which we routinely write about, and payroll hours or using time on the clock for personal business. It does not serve a public purpose.”

The theft of governmental funding Jamie Trogdon is officially accused of is reported to be in excess of $15,000 and her on-the-clock transgressions allegedly included babysitting while on the job.

While slamming the allegations as baseless, Wood is accused of reacting in a way that left the impression he signed off on many of the worker’s alleged actions. According to the government watchdog group, he refused to seek any disciplinary action when the matter became public and insisted there was no need to open a criminal investigation.

“It’s not like we all haven’t fudged our time sheets from time to time,” Wood said, and reported by Edgar County Watchdog. He also indicated Trogdon was only bound by the rules he "set forth verbally." 

"No public employer may gift away public time or money to employees for any reason. We suggest that any supervisor of a public employee commits official misconduct and misuse of public funds when they permit, authorize, or authorize by staying silent, abuse of public payroll and public funds,” Edgar County Watchdog reported.

The organization is also demanding a full investigation of Wood’s actions and many of the statements he made after the matter became public knowledge.