Skip to main content

ETHICS COMMISSION FINDS THAT APRIL MATHIS VIOLATED LAW - IMPOSES $500 FINE

APRIL MATHIS ATTEMPTS TO AVOID BEING PHOTOGRAPHED

The Arkansas Ethics Commission unanimously found that April Mathis, a former employee of Cody Hiland at the 20th Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney's Office, violated Arkansas Code Annotated § 21-8-304 and imposed a $500 fine.


Our complaint to the Ethics Commission alleged that Mathis used her position to obtain sealed court records from another state, records that were of divorce proceedings of the current wife of Mathis' ex-husband. 

You can read the complaint submitted to the Arkansas Ethics Commission by clicking here.

Mathis represent herself at the hearing and claimed that since she had been "sanctioned" at her former job, the matter already been dealt with and the complaint before them was moot. 

Mathis also claimed that there was no policy about use of county email for personal use.

The publisher of this blog countered each defense claim made by Mathis and stated that the evidence was clear and overwhelming that Mathis used her position for personal gain and benefit.  

He  pointed out that Mathis did not return the documents after she claimed she found out she was not supposed to have received them as her testimony in the hearing revealed.  Mathis tried to place blame on the circuit clerk from the other state.

The publisher also pointed out that the disciplinary action taken by her former employer had not bearing on the matter before the Commission, as did the pending investigation by Special Prosecutor Jack Quarry for possible criminal charges.

He also countered Mathis' claim about  email use and referred to an email from Faulkner County Attorney David Hogue that contained an excerpt of policy that prohibited such use.




You can read our previous posts about Mathis by clicking here, here, here, here, here and here.

We will post the Ethics Commission file as soon as it is released to us - usually it is made public 30 days after a final decision.


 

Popular posts from this blog

Little Rock pastor takes his own life after complaint of sexually explict conduct with a minor child

On April 24, 2024, Tyce Michelle Scroggins found what she has described to authorities as "inappropriate text and pictures" on her husband's cellphone. The messages were between her husband, Michael Todd Scroggins, the senior pastor at Moody Chapel AME Church in Little Rock and a minor student at LISA Academy High School. Moody Chapel AME Church   An argument ensued about the text messages and Pastor Scroggins left the home. On April 25th, Mrs. Scroggins filed a report with the Little Rock Police Department about the text messages. She also notified LISA Academy administration. On April 28th, Mrs. Scroggins filed a missing person report with the Sherwood Police Department.  Sherwood Police put out an alert on social media.   On April 30th, Little Rock Police found Pastor Scroggins dead from an apparent self inflicted gunshot wound in his vehicle parked in the back parking lot of the church. Our LRPD sources say that it appeared that Pastor Scroggins had been dead several ...

ASP Trooper texts and stalks a 14 year old that was near same age as his own daughter, while having an affair with her married sister.

Was ASP Trooper Billy Martin trying to pull all 3 sisters?   In January 2019, Callie Hinson and Joseph Ramer began dating. On June 13, 2020, Joseph proposed to Callie.  They were married on February 21, 2021. By the time of their first anniversary, their marriage was in shambles and Callie was estranged from her family all due to this man, Arkansas State Police Trooper Billy Mitchell Martin. Martin joined the ASP as a recruit in January of 2007. Records from his personnel file indicate he was from Boone County and he was posted there after graduating troop school.   Martin was promoted to Trooper First Class in July 2011 and Corporal in July 2014. In late 2019 and early 2020, Martin tried to get transferred to a Criminal Investigation position in Boone County but was unsuccessful. Around that same time, Martin filed for divorce from his wife of 10 years.   The Divorce was finalized in March 2020. Martin hit the single scene hard and had no trouble hooking up with bad...

Arkansas State Police Trooper fired

I n June 2023 a teenage female filed a compliant with the Arkansas State Police ("ASP") about Corporal Michael Valentin, an ASP Trooper stationed in Harrison, AR. In her complaint she alleged that Valentin had groomed her and had sexual activities, while on duty,  with her and another minor female. She also alleged he was stalking her.  An internal investigation was opened. Both teenage females were interviewed as was Valentin.  The girls stated that they were acquainted with Valentine because one of them was the stepdaughter of a fellow trooper and Valentin was a frequent customer at the restaurant that the fellow trooper and his wife owned, where both of the girls worked. The fellow state trooper was Jason Hutcheson. And the restaurant was Hutch's Hot Chicken. Jason Hutcheson Valentin even helped out with some construction projects at Hutcheson's restaurant. The girls stated that for about nine months,  Valentin had causal encounters with them at different locat...