‘Do your due diligence.’ Columbus finance probe’s final events, lasting impact
Editor’s note: This story is the last in a three-part series about how the Columbus Consolidated Government wound up in the midst of a comprehensive investigation into city finances and the probe’s consequences. Several city officials were investigated, and two were charged with criminal offenses. You can read Part 1 here. You can read Part 2 here.
The Columbus Council chamber still had a sizable crowd of attendees March 11 as Mayor Skip Henderson directed the meeting to the public agenda.
John Shinkle was the third resident to speak, following a book dedication and someone with concerns about a property. Shinkle stepped to the podium. He looked down at the paper in his hands as he explained Columbus Councilor Judy Thomas, who had not attended a meeting in recent months, asked him to read a letter from her.
“I hope that you truly hear Councilor Thomas’ voice because she wrote this letter with passion and lots of emotion,” Shinkle told the council. “Madame Clerk, Mr. Mayor, members of the city council, this correspondence is my official letter of resignation from the city council of the consolidated government of the city of Columbus, Georgia, effective today, March 11th.”
Shinkle expressed Thomas’ heartbreak in her letter as she reflected on the past 18 years she has served on the council in the citywide District 9 seat. Then she noted her expectations of the council for choosing her successor.
“I have enjoyed working with each one of you and hope for the best in your role as a member of this council,” Shinkle read from her letter. “I know you will do your due diligence as you select my replacement.”
Thomas’ resignation set the stage for numerous controversies in the city government, beginning when councilors — in a split vote — appointed her replacement no more than three hours after her announcement.
What followed were accusations of harassment and discrimination, the end of the Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office’s investigation into the Columbus Consolidated Government Finance Department, the firing of city manager Isaiah Hugley and the start of what promises to be an intensely watched mayoral race, including Hugley as a candidate.
‘You all have an agenda’
About three hours after Shinkle read Thomas’ resignation letter, the council meeting had reached the end of its agenda when Councilor Byron Hickey of District 1 signaled to Henderson that he had something more to say.
“In an effort to move forward with the District 9 council seat and to make sure that the people are represented,” Hickey said, “I’d like to make a nomination that John Anker fill that seat.”
Anker was sitting in the council chambers when Hickey made this motion.
Earlier in the meeting, during the public agenda, Anker joined a group criticizing Hugley. He accused Hugley of not performing his duties. He said the city manager failed in efforts to address problems with the city landfill and the business license backlog.
In his comments during the public agenda, Anker asked Henderson to take “immediate action” to fire Hugley.
When Hickey made the motion, it was clear Henderson, who as mayor votes only to break ties, was taken aback by the move. It was too early to make a decision, Henderson argued, and the council typically ensured the person who becomes an interim incumbent does not plan to run for council.
Councilor Bruce Huff of District 3 also was concerned no other qualified individuals had a chance to express an interest in filling the seat, so he asked to postpone the vote for two weeks. Mayor Pro Tem Gary Allen of District 6 and Councilor Travis Chambers of citywide District 10 joined him in requesting more time.
Councilor Charmaine Crabb of District 5 argued Anker was a good choice because he had run in two citywide races: the 2022 mayoral race and the 2024 runoff for the District 10 council seat. Anker lost to Henderson for mayor, and he lost to Chambers for the council seat.
Despite the objections, Hickey pushed for the vote to appoint Anker that day.
“It seems like you all have an agenda,” Huff said.
In the end, the council voted 6-3 to appoint Anker. Hickey, Crabb, Glenn Davis of District 2, Toyia Tucker of District 4, Joanne Cogle of District 7 and Walker Garrett of District 8 voted yes. Chambers, Huff and Allen voted no.
The next day, the Columbus branch of the NAACP and the Columbus Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance conducted a news conference in front of the City Services Center.
During the event, leaders of the coalition demanded to recall the vote to appoint Anker. They argued the move is part of a larger strategy to fire Hugley.
Former Mayor Teresa Tomlinson echoed this suspicion at a March 14 news conference. She used most of her speaking time to laud Hugley’s job performance and his 41 years working for the city.
Members of the growing coalition in support of Hugley and against the fast appointment of Anker continued speaking out. More than 20 residents spoke to the council about the issue during the public agenda at the March 25 meeting.
By mid-April, the coalition met to organize a plan for vetting and endorsing “unity” candidates in the 2026 elections for city council seats and mayor.
Cease and desist
In February, local political activist Nathan Smith, after seeing the payment in the city’s annual audit, questioned the ethics of state Rep. Carolyn Hugley (D-Columbus), the city manager’s wife, receiving a $29,000 small-business grant that had to be approved by her husband’s office.
During the March 25 meeting, another Columbus resident, Kathryn Tanner, also raised the issue. Later in the meeting, Hugley and deputy city manager Pam Hodge spoke about the grant’s details.
Hodge explained the grant is part of the $78 million the city received from the federal American Rescue Plan, and the grants were offered through a partnership between the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce and the Columbus Community Reinvestment Department.
Carolyn Hugley met all the requirements for the program, Hodge said, and her documentation was reviewed by the ARP program manager. When the Chamber of Commerce sent applications to CCG, the documentation again was reviewed by the city finance director, she said, before the city manager acted as the signatory.
When his wife’s application made it to his office, Hugley informed Henderson and city attorney Clifton Fay, Hodge said. Fay instructed Hugley to have Hodge sign the application, which she did.
Debate about this issue escalated April 8, when Hickey asked Hodge whether CCG-TV has video of Hugley informing the council that his wife received the grant.
Hodge said she didn’t find such a clip. Informing the mayor and city attorney was not enough, Hickey argued. He said the city’s administration should have presented the matter to the council for a vote.
Hickey went on to argue that Hugley might have violated the city charter by not informing the council. Appendix Two, which is the code of ethics and prohibited practices, states:
“Any elected official, appointed officer or employee of any office, department or agency to which this code of ethics applies who shall have any private financial interest, directly or indirectly, in any contract or matter pending before or within such office, department or agency shall disclose such private interest [to] the Council.”
During this April 8 meeting, Fay held firm on his belief that Hugley did all that was necessary because he was not the one who signed the document.
Ten days later, Hugley, represented by Atlanta-based attorney Scott Grubman, sent a cease-and-desist letter to Hickey, Davis, Tucker, Crabb, Cogle and Anker.
“I am writing to each of you to address your sustained and continuing campaign of intimidation, accusations, discrimination, and defamation against Mr. Hugley,” Grubman wrote in the letter.
Grubman demanded that the councilors apologize and retract their statements accusing Hugley of wrongdoing. The councilors engaged their own Atlanta-based attorney, Leslie Hartnett, who responded with a legal letter standing their ground and refusing to apologize.
Their back-and-forth escalated. Grubman alleged Hickey was retaliating against Hugley because of an issue regarding Hickey’s wife, who works for the Columbus Police Department, appealing for a pay raise.
As tension between the councilors and the city manager rose, an update from the CCG finance department investigation brought everything to a head.
Two people arrested
On May 14, the Ledger-Enquirer received this tip: A Muscogee County Sherriff’s Office administrative report details the results of the investigation into the CCG finance department.
After the L-E filed a request for that document under the Georgia Open Records Act, the sheriff’s office sent the report to the L-E on May 15, confirming the same day that two individuals had warrants for their arrest in connection to the investigation.
Fired city revenue manager Yvonne Ivey was the first person arrested. She was charged with two counts of simple battery, both misdemeanors.
These charges stem from accusations whistleblowers reported about Ivey putting her “hands on people,” according to the MCSO report. Investigators recommended criminal charges against Ivey because she allegedly grabbed and scratched a whistleblower, witnessed by a coworker, the report says.
When investigators interviewed Ivey, she told them she grabbed an employee by the arm to pull them into a file room because she didn’t want to discipline them in front of others. She denied “abusing” employees, according to the report.
One month after Ivey’s arrest, the charges against her were dismissed because their two-year statute of limitations were exceeded.
CCG finance director Angelica Alexander was arrested later in the day May 15. She faces a charge of obstructing a law enforcement officer, which is a misdemeanor. Her case is pending.
In the investigators’ recommendation that Alexander face criminal charges, they allege she was notified by whistleblowers and employees of unprofessional business conduct, including the shredding of checks, and did not act appropriately before the audit’s findings.
While only Alexander and Ivey faced prosecution, the administrative report indicated four other CCG employees might have engaged in criminal activity. Investigators listed various potential offenses against the four that included filing false documents, obstruction and false statements and writings.
Towaliga Judicial Circuit Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Wayne Jernigan advised Muscogee County Sheriff Greg Countryman that he would support the prosecution of Ivey and Alexander, according to the report.
In June, the Columbus Council approved in a split vote a payment of over $40,000 for CCG human resources director Reather Hollowell’s legal fees related to the investigation.
Hollowell had been implicated in the finance department investigation after the recusal letter from the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit District Attorney Don Kelly was made public and also was named in the document released by Countryman, but she never was charged.
Payment of these fees are required under appellate court decisions, Fay told the council.
“Only when the official acting in their official capacity is required to hire outside counsel to assert a legal position that obviously the local city attorneys cannot assert, and when the official is successful in asserting his or her position, a local government must pay a local official’s attorney’s fees when you have those two circumstances,” he said.
Despite approving the payment, some Columbus councilors said the fees are excessive and they are exploring their options against Fay’s advice.
Because the other CCG employees were not charged and did not approach the council about having legal fees repaid, the L-E isn’t identifying them.
The finance department investigation cost the city approximately $1 million, according to information the L-E obtained through the Georgia Open Records Act and an estimate from Countryman.
City manager fired, accusations of discrimination
On May 20, after the Columbus Council returned from a closed session, Crabb introduced a motion to fire Hugley. The council voted 7-3. to approve the motion. Crabb, Hickey, Davis, Tucker, Cogle, Garrett and Anker cast the yes votes.
“The pattern of sustained dysfunction and operational breakdowns within the departments Mr. Hugley oversees, including the criminal charges stemming from the investigations of the finance department and animal control, have led to the loss of confidence in his leadership,” Crabb said as she read the motion. “We need to restore stability in city operations.”
Grubman, Hugley’s lawyer, and his team were blindsided by the council’s decision, he told the Ledger-Equirer. And the move increased the likelihood that they would file a racial discrimination lawsuit.
Crabb had made racially charged statements to investigators that were detailed in the MCSO report. Grubman argued these statements are an example of the racial discrimination Hugley faced.
After the council fired him, Hugley took time during the same meeting to thank his team and offer a few parting words to the city.
“You know, there’s more to come,” he said. “You haven’t seen the last of me, and so we’re coming. I’ll just leave it at that.”
Where we are today
After Hugley’s firing, Grubman sent CCG a draft of an EEOC filing alleging racial discrimination and harassment against Hugley. He said the draft would be filed by July 14, unless CCG responded with a “meaningful proposal.”
To date, Grubman has not told the Ledger-Enquirer he has filed the draft. He was in the process of opening discussions with an attorney for CCG, Grubman told the L-E in a July 18 email
Grubman has not responded to further requests for information about the potential EEOC filing.
On June 16, the charges against Ivey were dismissed because the statute of limitations had expired. The statute of limitations for simple battery is two years in the state of Georgia. The time expiring was not the fault of the prosecutor or the sheriff’s office, Jernigan told the L-E, but rather a misunderstanding.
Henderson is approaching the end of his final term, leaving an open field for the 2026 mayoral race.
Hugley filed July 10 his declaration of intent to accept campaign contributions to run for mayor, and Cogle filed Aug. 1 to enter the mayoral race. Mark LaJoye, Steven Kelly and Kia Legette also have filed to run for the office.
“We’re starting to lose some of our focus on being kind to one another, lifting each other up, looking for areas that we can negotiate and settle on the middle ground and missing just basic human kindness,” Henderson told the L-E in an interview after Hugley was fired. “And I think Columbus is a community that, if they put their minds to it and begin to think more of others, we can lead the charge in that.”
