Maury Drummond, former executive director of the Louisiana Naval War Memorial Commission, improperly spent thousands of dollars in public funds to travel, dine out and make charitable donations while leading the commission between 2011 and 2013, according to a report from the Louisiana Office of the Inspector General released today.
In a written response included in the report, Drummond’s attorneys say that “in spite of some deficiencies in record keeping, Mr. Drummond never personally profited beyond his agreed upon compensation as a result of his conduct in office.”
The report says Drummond, among other things, used $4,860 in public funds to write checks from the commission to himself and his credit card provider “when no public purpose could be identified and for which he provided no receipts.” Drummond also used some $1,179 in commission funds to pay for his wife’s travel to accompany him at out-of-town conferences, “despite acknowledging this practice as an improper use of public funds after a 2006 audit finding,” the report says. Another $2,295 was given to various charities and organizations by Drummond, while the spending was recorded as “office supplies” in the general ledger.
Drummond retired in 2013 after 22 years with the commission, which oversees the Louisiana Naval War Memorial and museum, which includes the USS Kidd in downtown Baton Rouge. He was succeeded by Alex Juan, who previously worked as Drummond’s administrative assistant.
In their response, Drummond’s attorneys say “expenses he incurred were in each and every instance to promote the commission and its work, including travel and entertainment expenses for contributors, employees, agencies that promoted tourism, and the many volunteers who assisted along the way.”
The attorneys add that Drummond’s wife, Margaret, “worked as an unpaid volunteer for most of the time” that he was director.
While the report details instances of improper use of public funds by Drummond, it provides no recommendations. State Inspector General Stephen Street says in a letter to Gov. Bobby Jindal accompanying the report that’s because “new management has put controls in place to prevent the problems from the past from recurring.”
See the complete report, including the response from Drummond’s attorneys at Manasseh, Gill, Knipe & Bélanger.
