It’s bad enough when an audit finds a government office has fallen down on the job.
It’s worse when the government office doesn’t own up to those shortcomings.
That scenario played out in a recent examination of the way the Orange County Clerk of Courts handles its responsibilities to monitor cases where guardians are appointed to oversee the affairs of someone who is unable to do it themselves.
The audit submitted earlier this month by Orange County Comptroller Phil Diamond documented multiple shortcomings by the Clerk of Courts office, which is run by Tiffany Moore Russell. As is the nature of audits, Diamond’s office brought the receipts.
Rather than being chagrined, Moore Russell answered many of the criticisms with what amounts to a not my job response. She rejected in whole or in part 11 of the comptroller’s 13 recommendations for improvement.
Her response is not an encouraging sign that the clerk’s office is redoubling its efforts to ensure guardians don’t rip off or abuse their wards.
Lack of scrutiny goes to the heart of the widespread scandal centering on Orlando-based guardian Rebecca Fierle, who is facing criminal charges in one of the cases she handled.
Guardians like Fierle essentially are granted the ability to exercise legal rights that belonged to someone who, for any number of reasons, has become incapacitated. It’s an awesome responsibility, and one that requires intense scrutiny by the court system to ensure the guardians’ wards are kept safe and don’t get cheated.
Some of the responsibility for oversight falls to Florida’s clerks of courts, the elected offices whose many responsibilities include serving as a bureaucratic watchdog for the guardian program.
Keeping watch is primarily where the comptroller’s office found Moore Russell’s office came up short.
Problems included failing to monitor guardianship cases, failing to notify the court when problems were discovered and insufficient training of the clerk’s employees, which seems particularly important given the complex and arcane nature of this kind of work.
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| Tiffany Moore Russell |
Audits are complicated, so rather than attempt to summarize the entire 86-page report, here’s just one illustration:
The audit checked 24 guardians and found 19 of them hadn’t provided all the legal documents they’re required to file, including credit histories, criminal background checks and proof of a bond, which is kind of an insurance policy.
These documents are important because guardians often have access to their ward’s finances. If someone’s been charged with embezzlement, for example, that’s good to know.
Moore Russell’s answer to that criticism, and the recommendation to do better, was that if something is found to be missing, the clerk’s office makes a note of it. Problem is, those notes don’t automatically get forwarded to the judge in charge of a guardian’s case, according to Diamond’s office.
The other problem is that the audit found the clerk’s office had noted missing information just once in the 19 instances where legal documents were lacking.
It’s as if the clerk’s office views itself as little more than a glorified Dropbox, a depository for information rather than a critical evaluator of information.
No one is perfect, especially when it comes to keeping track of countless documents as a clerk of courts office is expected to do.
Audits are a way to identify weaknesses and strengthen the way things are done.
That only works if the people who are subject of the audit are willing to demonstrate some self-reflection and humility.
In politics generally, and with this audit specifically, the preferred response is “we’ll do better” instead of “nothing to see here.”
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