By the numbers
428: Hours Martin admitted to spending either at or driving to and from casinos during work hours
$28,891: Amount Martin was compensated for those hours, plus falsified mileage
$20,600: Amount stolen from various school groups and accounts, including by forging checks
7: number of years Martin could spend in prison if given maximum, consecutive sentences on all counts
Staying with the story
The Springfield News-Sun first reported that Tecumseh was investigating Brad Martin back in December and was the only news outlet to cover his plea hearing Wednesday. We’ve dug into every aspect of the investigation, delivering stories about the community’s reaction, the details of his expenses revealed through public records requests and expert analysis on the signs of gambling addiction.
Suspended Tecumseh Superintendent Brad Martin accepted a plea deal Wednesday, pleading guilty to three felony counts related to missing funds from the district.
Martin waived his right to have a grand jury hear the case, admitting instead to a bill of information that charged him with theft in office, tampering with records and forgery.
As part of the deal he has agreed to pay restitution and have it withheld from his State Teachers Retirement System benefits.
The charges carry a maximum sentence of seven years in prison and more than $20,000 in fines, in addition to restitution.
By pleading guilty to the bill of information, Martin admitted:
•He was at a casino for 307 hours that he was supposed to be at work during his time as superintendent.
•He spent an additional 121 work hours driving to and from casinos.
•He was compensated $24,000 for those hours.
•He submitted 77 falsified mileage reimbursement requests and was compensated more than $4,800 for them.
•Martin submitted three purchase requests for eight iPads and received checks for more than $4,400 for the tablets. He never produced the iPads or receipts.
•He registered for but didn’t attend three conferences for which the district paid $850.
•An additional $20,600 was found to be missing from various funds, including a safe at the school, money raised from a silent auction, money appropriated to buy a computer and the elementary PTO. Some of that money was obtained by forging checks.
Acting Tecumseh Superintendent Paula Crew issued a statement on behalf of the district and school board members Wednesday evening, saying they’d been advised of the plea.
“Our understanding is that the issue of restitution is still being worked out, pending receipt of the final report of a special audit, but the board will continue to seek to recoup all losses,” Crew said.
A pre-sentence hearing will be held to determine the amount of restitution owed. Martin will be sentenced June 30.
News of the admission shocked some district residents.
“I didn’t think he would own up to it,” said Larry Hall, who has campaigned against district levies. “We’ve been saying all along that they were not handling the money right. This shows we were right.”
It’s upsetting that Martin would steal from the community, New Carlisle resident Michelle Wells said.
“It’s a small town and it’s hard, it’s hard out here to survive,” Wells said. “For him to steal from kids especially, it’s awful.”
Amber Tipton, a 2005 Tecumseh High School graduate and Park Layne resident whose two children attend the district, said she hasn’t lost confidence in the school board or the administration, but hopes they can bounce back and make things better for students.
“I just hope Tecumseh can really think twice about who they put in charge of our money, especially considering students are suffering a lot with busing and everything else,” Tipton said.
Martin has been suspended without pay or benefits since Jan. 10, but the investigation into the missing money began months earlier when he requested money to buy iPads and never produced them.
After he was repeatedly asked for receipts or the tablets themselves, Martin was placed on paid administrative leave in December and a criminal investigation was opened by the Clark County Sheriff’s Office.
The school board has initiated termination proceedings, but Martin requested a hearing that he’s guaranteed by law before he can be fired. That meeting has been rescheduled several times, most recently for May 18.
“We anticipate that the termination hearing for Mr. Martin that was scheduled to commence on May 18, 2015, will not go forward in light of this guilty plea, but our legal counsel has not yet had an opportunity to speak with Mr. Martin’s civil attorney about this matter,” Crew’s statement said.
About the Author