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Case might file appeal of decision Ethics panel confirms 2 violations by airport head By Chris Bristol SALEM � The state ethics commission ruled Friday that Airport Director Bern Case twice improperly used his position for personal benefit. Case said he might appeal. "I don�t know what I�m going to do yet," he said. "I still believe that I�m right, but sometimes it can be expensive to prove it." Meeting at the state Capitol, the Government Standards and Practices Commission adopted findings made by investigators that concluded Case used his position in one instance to help promote his wife�s business. In another instance, airport maintenance men were sent to Case�s home � on the clock � to repair a faulty well pump. At the same time, investigators concluded that many other similar allegations made by a former airport secretary were unprovable hearsay. Case said he was glad most of the allegations were dismissed. "At least we�re down to two issues that are manageable to discuss," he said. "All the rest of that crap that got slung just wasn�t warranted." Two other airport supervisors also were caught up in the probe: One has been cleared by the commission and the other was given a minor reprimand. Carl Worden, an Eagle Point financial consultant whose complaint sparked the probe, said he was comfortable with the outcome of the case even though he felt ethics investigators "bent over backwards" to be fair to Case. Case has two options: negotiate a settlement in the case (typically a fine) or request a contested hearing before an administrative law judge. "If he was smart, he would try to make this whole thing go away and negotiate a settlement," Worden said. "They (investigators) disregarded so much information from independent witnesses it�s amazing. In a court of law, I doubt the jury would be so forgiving." Worden, spokesman for the watchdog Southern Oregon Militia, blamed the entire episode on lax oversight by Case�s superiors. The airport is owned and operated by Jackson County. "They were running a loose ship over there," he said, "and nobody at the county was paying attention." The case resulted from a county audit triggered by complaints made by former airport secretary Dawn Neff. The audit criticized airport management for a "pattern of poor judgments" that included sloppy timekeeping, questionable use of staff for personal projects and misuse of public property. In a statement, county Administrator Sue Slack defended the county�s handling of the matter, noting that the county reviewed and changed airport record-keeping. "Airport management has worked very hard to correct procedures that led to these complaints, and I am satisfied that our current policies will protect against future complaints," she said. The ethics investigation focused on two basic areas: whether Case routinely sent on-the-clock maintenance employees to his home for repairs and whether he used his public office to aid his wife�s fledgling company, Turbo Way, which makes a wheelchair-friendly hydraulic passenger lift. The investigation started in December, and ethics staff eventually documented at least four occasions in which two maintenance employees were sent to Case�s home in Eagle Point for repairs. Although the employees told county auditors they felt "pressured" to perform such work, they told ethics investigators they did the work on their own time. Case had records indicating he paid or tried to pay the employees for their time. Thanks to the sloppy timekeeping, investigators ultimately concluded they could prove only one repair that actually occurred on the clock. Worden called the entire episode a "fairy tale." "These guys were repeatedly �donating� vacation time to fix Bern�s pump?" he said. "Come on." In the Turbo Way charges, investigators also concluded that Case was "actively pursuing" a manufacturer who would build a prototype just before his wife, Michelle, started the company in May 1997. Investigators said it couldn�t be proved that he continued to do so afterwards. "He denies that his initial efforts were in furtherance of that business," the report said. "It appears that only Bern and Michelle Case know for sure." Nevertheless, investigators concluded that Case was on county time when he and his wife towed a Turbo Way ramp to an airport convention in Nashville, Tenn., in May 1998. The ramp was sold, which the commission ruled was an illegal benefit to the Cases. Airport director since 1994, Case has overseen a dramatic growth in passenger traffic and a series of airport improvements. He was named Oregon�s airport manager of the year last year. In an interview after Friday�s hearing, Case complained that he was only given "maybe seven minutes" to explain what he argues is little more than a misunderstanding. He insisted he was on vacation when he went to the Nashville convention, negating a conflict of interest in the Turbo Way matter. Sloppy timekeeping was the main problem, he explained. "I know the bucks stop with me, but I�m not the one who posts payroll," he said. "We�re all victims of other people�s mistakes. It�s a team concept." "Believe me, everybody around here documents their time off now," he added. "Our timekeeping is probably the best in the county now." 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