Stevens Point News

Main Menu

  • Covid 19
  • Sports
    • Sports News
    • High School Sports Scores
    • Wisconsin Rapids Rafters
  • Crime
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Obits
  • Contact
    • Subscribe
  • Classifieds
    • View Ads
    • Place Ads
  • Legal Ads
    • Our Legals
    • Statewide
  • E-Edition
    • Stevens Point City Times

logo

Stevens Point News

  • Covid 19
  • Sports
    • Sports News
    • High School Sports Scores
    • Wisconsin Rapids Rafters
  • Crime
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Obits
  • Contact
    • Subscribe
  • Classifieds
    • View Ads
    • Place Ads
  • Legal Ads
    • Our Legals
    • Statewide
  • E-Edition
    • Stevens Point City Times
Top Stories
Home›Top Stories›It’s Official: County Treasurer Delivers Resignation to Sheriff

It’s Official: County Treasurer Delivers Resignation to Sheriff

By STEVENS POINT NEWS
September 29, 2016
601
0
Share:
Stokes claims she’s victim of witch hunt by county executive, board chairman 

By Brandi Makuski

Embattled Portage Co. Treasurer Stephanie Stokes has officially resigned.

According to Sheriff Mike Lukas, Stokes delivered her resignation to his office — a requirement of any elected Constitutional office — Thursday morning.

Stokes had initially announced her resignation in an open letter to the City Times on Tuesday, firing shots at both Portage Co. Executive Patty Dreier and Board Chairman Phil Idsvoog in the letter, saying both have gone out of their way to damage her reputation.

One claim involved Dreier allegedly telling county staff that Stokes has been fired last week — a claim Dreier emphatically refutes.

“That is absolutely incorrect,” Dreier said Tuesday afternoon.”That’s impossible; the [state] statute outlines the process in Chapter 17. The verified charges I submitted on Friday merely opens the door for the process of the Portage Co. Board of Supervisors, so that’s her due process in the civil side of things. The criminal side of things continue in whatever wheels are turning in Madison.”

Stokes also claims she’s been locked out of the courthouse and treasurer’s office. City and county employees are assigned electronic badges to gain entry to the building, and Stokes’ badge did not work when she arrived at building on Monday.

Dreier said it was an accident.

“There was a situation on Monday where a facilities employee, not being ordered to by anyone else, made an error and [locked Stokes out], but it was corrected,” Dreier said. “The facilities director sent her an apology note.”

Stokes sent another open letter to the City Times office on Wednesday, arguing Dreier’s explanation was not accurate.

“Maintenance staff said Patty Dreier had informed them not to allow me access as I had been fired effective Friday, September 23,” Stokes’ Sept. 28 letter readers in part. “When I approached the maintenance director for assistance, he told me that the initials ‘P.D.’ were next to the order to remove my access and the initials were time-stamped shortly after 6:00 AM on September 23, the same day she had me served with removal papers.”

Stokes’ office was first placed under investigation last fall for was the county described as “inconsistencies” in the office. The case was investigated by the Stevens Point Police Dept., and later forwarded to the Wis. Attorney General’s office in anticipation of criminal charges. What those criminal charges could be was not immediately known.

Very little about the investigation into the treasurer’s office has been made public until Sept. 23, when Dreier publicly released “verified charges” of a civil nature against Stokes. Drier charged Stokes with misconduct in public office, neglect of duty and violation of code of ethics for Portage Co. public officials.

Stokes is accused waiving interest on delinquent property taxes owed by some county residents, including former Deputy Treasurer Amy Townsend, who resigned last year under unknown terms.

Stokes is also accused of failing to send tax settlement payments to county municipalities and schools, which Dreier said cost the county more than $20,000 in interest.

Outside of her open letters, Stokes, who has held the office since 2004, has not responded to multiple requests for comment about the investigation and charges.

“[Dreier] has made it impossible for me to do my job,” Stokes’ letter reads in part. “Therefore, I have no choice but to resign, but do so under protest.”

In her letter, Stokes also alleges Idsvoog encouraged investigators working on the case to “just find something on her.”

“That conversation was over a year ago,” Idsvoog said. “I do recall that comment, but as far as I’m concerned it’s taken out of context. I believe I said something to the effect of, ‘If there’s something wrong over there you better find it’. Beyond that, I don’t recall.”

Idsvoog also said he and Finance Committee Chairman Jim Gifford were “insistent” that the county hire an outside law firm to investigate Stokes’ office specifically to avoid accusations of a witch hunt.

“We wanted to make sure we had absolutely nobody from county [government] involved in that investigation, so the investigation would be objective and there wouldn’t be any possible way of accusing anybody inside the county of having some bias on this matter,” he said.

Idsvoog also said he expects the county will appoint an interim treasurer during a special Executive/Operations Committee meeting scheduled for Sept. 30.

“It’s imperative we have a treasurer,” Dreier said. “We’re coming up on tax season so it’s vital we have someone in the office to ensure tax bills and whatnot are sent out in a timely manner.

TagsFeatured
Previous Article

Business Council Job Fair Held Oct. 6

Next Article

Whiting Moves on Safety Measures for HH

0
Shares
  • 0
  • +
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

Related articles More from author

  • Top Stories

    City Looks to Add More Parking Meters

    July 10, 2013
    By STEVENS POINT NEWS
  • News

    Mayor Issues Statement on Snow Removal Enforcement

    April 17, 2018
    By STEVENS POINT NEWS
  • Community NewsTop Stories

    Stevens Point Airport Renamed After Hero Fighter Pilot

    January 29, 2014
    By STEVENS POINT NEWS
  • Community News

    Exclusive: Alderman Really After Dark Masked Vigilante

    April 1, 2014
    By STEVENS POINT NEWS
  • Top Stories

    Secrets of the world’s most popular handbags

    October 8, 2013
    By STEVENS POINT NEWS
  • Top Stories

    The only outfit you need for this fall

    October 7, 2013
    By STEVENS POINT NEWS

High School Sports

Go to High School Sports

Free SP Newsletter

  • Sports

  • Commentary

  • Lady Hornets’ win streak continues with win over Panthers

    By Jacob Heid
    January 26, 2023
  • Cardinals get senior night shutout win 

    By Jacob Heid
    January 26, 2023
  • ‘At this time of the year you want to be progressing’- Panthers win three of ...

    By Jacob Heid
    January 24, 2023
  • Awe

    Doing the unthinkable

    By Jacob Heid
    January 24, 2023
  • Curt Lamb

    Almond-Bancroft’s Lamb hits 400-win milestone 

    By Jacob Heid
    January 23, 2023
  • Pat Wood

    From the publisher: Christmas and Hanukkah

    By Kris Leonhardt
    December 24, 2022
  • Ice fishing contest Reels in $1,500 for Portage County Literacy Council

    By Taylor Hale
    March 17, 2022
  • Kemmeter Column: County celebrates year after quarantine

    By Taylor Hale
    July 12, 2021
  • Isherwood Column: Great engineering projects two

    By Taylor Hale
    July 11, 2021
  • Shoes News Graphic

    Show Column: Odd Jobs

    By Taylor Hale
    July 9, 2021

About Us


The Portage County Gazette is published every Friday by Multi Media Channels. It is locally-owned, locally-operated and locally-written. Subscriptions are $64 annually, delivered via the U.S. Postal Service.


To subscribe, go www.shopmmclocal.com/product/portage-county-gazette or call 715-258-4360

  • PO Box 408, Waupaca WI 54981
  • (715) 343-8045
  • News editor: [email protected]
Copyright © 2022 Multi Media Channels LLC.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied, modified or adapted without the prior written consent of Multi Media Channels LLC.
×