Commissioners could discuss if hiring a P.I was appropriate for DSS Board.BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WECT) – Brunswick County officials could discuss whether or not it was appropriate for the social services board to hire a private investigator. The investigator was hired shortly after County Commissioner Charles Warren became the chairman of the DSS Board.
The DSS Board hired the private investigator in August 2010.
Assistant County Manager Steve Stone said former DSS director Jamie Orrock signed the contract with the investigator days before Orrock was put on administrative leave. The DSS Board voted in October 2010 to fire Orrock.
Stone said the DSS Board does not have the power to enter into contracts. But, the contract was signed before the county could step in and stop it.
Stone said usually if a board is not satisfied with the results of an internal investigation, it turns to the sheriff's office or the State Bureau of Investigation.
The money he said for the investigation came out social services' "client services fund." That money is usually set aside for things like interpreters and services that go directly to DSS clients.
The private investigator cost the county 5,500 dollars. Even though the money came out of the county's pocket, the majority of commissioners and other county officials have no idea what the investigator discovered. Stone said Warren refuses to release the results of the investigation to the county.
This is coming up now because fellow county commissioners want to remove Warren from his seat on the DSS Board. In December, Warren had fellow DSS Board member Patricia Sykes and a reporter removed from a DSS Board meeting.
Commissioners originally planned to hold a hearing to remove Warren from the DSS Board in January, but he filed a temporary restraining order stopping them from having a hearing. A judge ruled that commissioners can go ahead and hold a hearing to try to remove Warren from the social services board. That hearing is set for February 20.
Copyright 2012 WECT. All rights reserved.
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2012 WorldNow and WECT, a Raycom Media Station.
