Associated Press
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York’s inspector general says a nonprofit established by state prison guards for neighborhood outreach misspent $348,000 on personal mileage and poorly documented expenses.
Inspector General Catherine Leahy Scott says then Corrections Commissioner Brian Fischerexceeded his authority in letting correction officers take 400 days of state time for nonprofit activities.
Scott says the Correction Officers and Police Supporting Children through Awareness and Reality-based Education, or COPS CARE, has ceased operating and reimbursed the state all its remaining assets of $54,689.
A 2008 audit of its $600,000 in grants followed complaints by some guards that the nonprofit’s officers filed false time sheets and failed to conduct programs.
While Scott’s probe “did not substantiate fraud,” finding 40 school programs were presented, she cites deficient documentation for expenses and reimbursable “administrative duties.”