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June 11, 2008

Not office material

Richard Gray’s embezzlement case may have been dismissed, but that doesn’t make Gray qualified for office.

Gray, the former district attorney for District 27, had been charged with embezzling from his office more than $9,000 in confiscated drug task force money. Last week, the judge in the trial dismissed the charges, saying the state had not met its burden of proof. And Gray said after the dismissal that he was not closing the door to political office.

The filing of the charges against Gray were surprising given that state Attorney General Drew Edmondson had said charges would not be filed against anyone in the office of former Muskogee County District Attorney John David Luton after more than $11,000 came up missing there.

The two cases were not identical, but they were similar, which is one of the reasons Gray’s case drew more interest than it would have otherwise.

Those interested in Gray’s case will argue the merits or non-merits of the charges.

However, one thing is clear — if Gray runs for office again, which he said he might, voters ought to remember not the dismissed charges, but his record.

His management of his office was suspect because of staff issues, missing money, and questionable expenses.

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