Multiple crimes? He's a Republican kind of guy

By Lee Russ

Wednesday, August 16, 2006 at 05:16 PM

In case you missed it, the Republicans in Indiana's Allen County recently had this little problem of having 11 candidates disqualified because the party's Executive Director, Doug Foy, forged their signatures on the official filing forms.  Boy, what an odd, unexpected, unforeseeable action by the county party's Executive Director.

Nope.  Also turns out that this Executive Director had a string of misdemeanor guilty pleas.

The rap sheet:

Foy was first convicted in April 1991 for operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

At the end of that year, he pleaded guilty to battery and resisting law enforcement.

He then pleaded guilty in March 1992 to two separate charges of criminal trespass and criminal mischief, both charges for which he was arrested earlier that year. According to court documents, he never served any jail time.

In December 2003 he was again convicted for operating a vehicle while intoxicated. According to court records, he was sentenced to Allen County Jail for one year with all but 10 days suspended, given one year probation, and fined $559.50.

It was unclear whether he served his 10 days in jail or in home detention, but in August 2004 Foy was back in court after he admitted he violated his probation.

That February, he was sentenced to 40 days in Allen County Jail. The next month he was cleared to serve his time in home detention.

Get it?  All this occurred in the same county where he was later made Executive Director.  The same little county.  So what's the excuse of the county party for having hired the guy they just had to fire?

[party chairman Steve] Shine said the party's Interview Committee screens all applicants and all prospective candidates.

Ken Neumeister, head of the committee, said the committee limits its queries to felony convictions. There are no criminal background checks done, Neumeister said, though the committee thoroughly checks an applicant's references. The operating committee is now looking at the process of criminal background checks, Neumeister said, adding that "it's something (the party) needs to discuss."

During any interview, though, Neumeister throws out a wider net with one blunt question: "Is there anything in your background that would embarrass the party or embarrass you should it come out?'" Neumeister said.

"If he told me he had one misdemeanor from drinking and driving, I think I would've given him a pass, because we all make mistakes," Neumeister said. "But if he would've told me he had two or three, I think I would've had to pass on him."

They live in the same county, the guy is high profile enough to be named Executive Director of the county party, and these other high profile Republicans just never knew about the criminal trouble.  Stands to reason, right?

Somewhere there is a Republican training camp where they teach their people how and who to hire.  They hand out a standard textbook on personnel practices and offer this single instruction:

"See where it says 'don't hire?'  Cross out the 'don't'"