State officials plan to subpoena ousted Rep. Jeremy Durham’s tax records,
State election finance officials plan to subpoena tax returns for expelled Republican lawmaker Jeremy Durham, more evidence the investigation into his campaign finances will proceed despite his ouster.
The state Registry of Election Finance has already subpoenaed a slew of records from Durham and his bank, in conjunction with an investigation into whether Durham used campaign funds for personal purposes. But the state must obtain more records to learn about any potential violations and to uphold the integrity of the organization, said board Chairman Tom Lawless during a meeting Wednesday.
“This organization stands for making them do it right. And I’ve got some real serious, serious concerns — as we all have — that he may not have done it right. Or he was so mixing and matching his personal finances, business finance, whatever proclivities he might have had out there,” Lawless said.
Later in the meeting Lawless added, “I’m not trying to pound on someone when they’re down. But he epitomizes everything that this organization was established to try to fix.”
The state House of Representatives expelled Durham by a 70-2 vote on Tuesday, only the second expulsion since the Civil War. Much of the debate Tuesday leading up to his ouster focused on a Tennessee attorney general investigation — spurred by The Tennessean’s ongoing investigation into Durham’s actions. The AG’s report detailed allegations from 22 women and others of rampant sexual misconduct by Durham. Durham has denied any sexual impropriety.
Few representatives referenced the ongoing state campaign finance investigation, also spurred by the attorney general after a former Durham employee said Durham asked him to take money from his campaign account and put it into his title company.
Durham refutes that claim, pointing to a recent state registry memo that notes that an expenditure to the former employee may not have come directly from Durham’s campaign account. But Durham did acknowledge, in a wide-ranging, eight-page letter sent to colleagues on Monday, that the $191,000 discrepancy between his campaign finance report and campaign bank accounts discovered by the state is due to large investments.
Recently, prominent GOP donor Andy Miller confirmed Durham invested campaign funds into his account. Durham also recently closed his title company. Drew Rawlins, executive director of the Bureau of Ethics and Campaign finance, said the closure would have no affect on the registry’s ability to obtain Durham records.
Lawless and the rest of the state registry said there’s still more that needs to be investigated, and that the tax returns could potentially shed new light on how Durham may have or have not used campaign funds.
“There’s a certain trust the public puts in people running for office, and if you’re spending the money for your own personal welfare or your own … I’d like to get this sordid detail finished, to the end, and close the chapter of Mr. Durham,” Lawless said.
The registry’s actions have no bearing on a federal investigation that appears to be underway. Peter Strianse, a criminal defense attorney recently hired by Durham, told The Tennessean the U.S. attorney had issued two subpoenas related to a possible tax violation. Strianse didn’t immediately respond to questions as to whether any subpoenas have requested Durham’s tax records.
Rawlins said he anticipates the investigation will be complete by October or November.
Reach Dave Boucher at 615259-8892 and on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1.