The Wayne County government scandals keep on coming.
John Wisely and Marlon Walker of the Detroit Free Press report that a one-man Wayne County grand jury has indicted three people in the probe into the Wayne County Jail fiasco.
The paper reported that the three indicted included: Carla Sledge, the former Wayne County chief financial officer for Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano; Steven Collins, chief assistant Wayne County corporation counsel who served as a board member for the Wayne County Building Authority, and construction manager Anthony Parlovecchio.
According to the Detroit News, Parlovecchi was a Wayne County appointee under former economic development czar Turkia Mullen. He quit working for the county in 2011 and was hired as an outside contractor to oversee the jail project.
Sledge and Collins are both charged with misconduct in office, a 5-year felony and willful neglect of duty, a one-year misdemeanor, the Freep reported. Parlovecchio is charged with willful neglect of duty.
Construction on the new jail downtown was halted after cost overruns reached nearly $100 million. The failed project became an issue in the unsuccessful campaign of Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, who lost his re-election bid in the August primary.
The Freep writes that that Sledge and Collins are accused of lying to the Wayne County Commission and the Wayne County Building Authority about the costs of the jail project.
“This has been a long and arduous undertaking,” Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a news release announcing the indictments. “The one man grand jury was necessary to ensure that the process was impartial, fair, and free from politics.” -- Allan Lengel
