Politics & Government

Embattled County Commissioner Elaine Boyer Faces Ethics Complaints

DeKalb County Commissioner Elaine Boyer said she intended to reimburse the county for all personal purchases she made using a county credit card.

Problems continue for embattled County Commissioner Elaine Boyer, who has been criticized for making personal charges on her county-issued credit card.

Two individuals, Joseph Newton and Thomas Owens, filed ethics complaints against Boyer and her chief of staff, Bob Lundsten, reports WABE. The DeKalb County Board of Ethics will take up complaints against Boyer next month.

Signing on to the complaints were representatives of the citizens group Restore DeKalb. One of its members, Joel Edwards, told WABE, “We want transparency, we want integrity, and we want accountability. Bottom line.”

Find out what's happening in North Druid Hills-Briarcliffwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Boyer apologized last month for allegedly misusing her county debit card for thousands of dollars of personal expenses, and said she didn’t realize the practice was prohibited.

According to an investigation by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Boyer used her county VISA card for non-work-related expenses that included meals, rental cars, and airline tickets to a ski resort.

Find out what's happening in North Druid Hills-Briarcliffwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Boyer, who reportedly tallied more than $12,047 in personal charges on her county-issued credit card, says she didn't realize that was prohibited. 
 
"I want to offer an extreme, heartfelt, sincere apology," Elaine Boyer told WSB TV.

Boyer has since paid back most, if not all, of the money.

DeKalb Board of Ethics member Isaac Blythers says the board will take up the complaints at its May 8 meeting, but the group will not schedule a hearing on the complaints until June at the earliest.

DeKalb County Commissioner Larry Johnson has scheduled a session next week with fellow commissioners to discuss the possibility of creating board policy for using the cards.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from North Druid Hills-Briarcliff