BIRMINGHAM - AL -
The former Birmingham Board of Education president will be on probation for two years. Wednesday, Edward Maddox pled guilty to using his political office for personal gain.
But the investigation into board members' behavior may not be over.
"He stood up and was a man and took responsibility for his misjudgments. He'll go on and give to this community," said Richard Jaffe, Maddox's attorney.
But he won't serve the community as a member of the Birmingham Board of Education.
Resignation and probation were part of a plea deal reached over what his attorney calls unintentional misjudgments.
"This was a very difficult decision for my client to make but going through a trial would be in no one's best interest," said Jaffe.
Maddox wouldn't comment after pleading guilty to ethics violations stemming from two votes. The first vote was cast as Woodlawn Neighborhood Association president to use six thousand dollars of city funds for his own charity, Woodlawn Missions and More. The charity employs two of his children. The second violation was for giving his daughter, a Birmingham Board of Education employee, a raise.
The board was already under the state's microscope when District Attorney Brandon Falls was asked to look into whether Maddox lived in Birmingham. That's when he discovered the ethics issues. Falls says there are rumblings about other board members having similar problems.
"The chatter we keep hearing is if you look into this, you better look into that. That seem to be resonating around this situation. We can't do that without witnesses," said Falls.
That's why Falls is asking for anyone with information to speak up.
"We can't move forward with rumor or word on the street. We need someone who's willing to stand up if they know something about this situation," he said.
The school board has thirty days to appoint someone from Maddox's district. If it can't, the city council has 30 days to do the same then the pick goes to the state.
In the meantime, BOE Vice President Alana Edwards will resume the president's responsibilities.
There are questions about the difficulty passing anything with a board of eight.
Board members declined to comment.
