10/31/2011: For expense account fraud. From Nigel Jaquiss at Willamette Week:
Burton, a former longtime lawmaker and Metro chair, abruptly left the university last summer ahead of a damning audit, first reported in August by WW, that found he took an 11-day European junket on PSU’s dime under highly questionable circumstances. Burton claimed he was going to attend professional conferences but the conferences either did not take place or took place when he was not present.
Burton subsequently repaid $4,500 and PSU referred his case to the Oregon Government Ethics Commission. But WW has learned Burton is now under criminal investigation. …
Ernie Kent did the same thing years ago. Took his mistress to Mexico on the Athletic Departments dime. Low and behold we still kept him around, until we built a 200 million dollar venue and needed new blood in the program.
And we all know that anyone else employed by the school would have been criminally charged if we took our mistress to Mexico misusing school funds. But then again this is the athletic money we are talking about. I’m curious if Ernie would have paid the money back if he had not been caught? Probably not. I think this incident is common knowledge.