Ethics panel hears blogger’s complaint about ex-legislator

Hallum, convicted of election fraud in 2012, says amended reports filed

Former state Rep. Hudson Hallum, D-Marion, said Wednesday that he’s corrected errors in his campaign finance reports, and is now reporting that he’s paid back $81,000 in campaign debt, after conservative blogger and accountant Jason Tolbert of Benton filed an ethics complaint against him in September.

Tolbert filed a written complaint against Hallum with the Arkansas Ethics Commission,saying his primary concern is a $50,000 loan made by Fidelity National Bank of West Memphis on June 1, 2011, to Hallum, because no subsequent disclosures had been made regarding repayment of the loan.

“It is believed that inadequate [disclosure] has been made regarding guarantor Kent Hallum, and it is unknown why payment has not been made and/or disclosed on any reports for over a two year period,” according to Tolbert’s complaint. Kent Hallum is Hudson Hallum’s father and former campaign manager.

The five-member ethics panel met in a private session Wednesday with the former lawmaker and Tolbert to determine whether probable cause exists to find Hallum violated state ethics laws and regulations. Afterward, Hallum told reporters that “I know that there were some problems with my reporting and I admitted and acknowledge that.”

“I have always admitted when I made a mistake with what I have done, and I have since corrected the reports to the best that I can and I put myself on the mercy of the commission,” he said. “I just want to apologize to the people of Arkansas for what I have done.”

Hallum filed amended campaign finance reports Friday that show that as of Aug. 11, 2011, his campaign debts included $50,000 to Kent Hallum, $29,000 that he owes himself and $2,000 to Crittenden EMS, which Hallum owns.

Another amended campaign finance report, filed Friday, shows that Hallum contributed $81,000 to his campaign on Jan. 28, 2013, to pay off his campaign debt.

According to Tolbert, Hallum said that he incorrectly reported that the $50,000 loan was from Fidelity National Bank when the loan was from his father, and Hallum indicated “it was an oversight that he realized the day before the interview with the commission.”

“It should have been obvious to him two years ago that it was not his loan,” the blogger said.

Among other things, Tolbert’s complaint said that it appears that the Markham Group of Little Rock was a political consultant for Hallum during the 2011 special election, but no expenditure was reported on the six reports filed for the period.

In an amended campaign finance, filed Friday, Hallum reported a $17,183.09 campaign finance expense to the Markham Group on March 1, 2011.

As to whether the commission decided Wednesday that there is probable cause to find that Hallum violated state ethics laws and regulations, commission Executive Director Graham Sloan said he’s not allowed to even confirm the existence of an ethics complaint until the commission takes final action on a complaint. The commission didn’t vote to dismiss Tolbert’s complaint on Wednesday, after it convened in public session.

In June, Hallum and his father were sentenced to serve three years’ probation with nine months of home detention for taking part in a 2011 scheme to buy votes for the younger Hallum with cheap alcohol, chicken dinners and cash. They also were fined and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service.

Hallum resigned from his District 54 House seat after pleading guilty Sept. 5, 2012, to election-fraud charges. His father and two other men also pleaded guilty to charges that day.

The four admitted that they engaged in a scheme involving absentee ballots to ensure that Hudson Hallum won three special elections in 2011 - a Democratic primary April 20, a runoff May 10 and the general election July 12. The seat had been vacated by Fred Smith, who resigned in January 2011 after learning that a theft charge from his past was a felony, making him ineligible for public office.

Front Section, Pages 7 on 12/19/2013

Upcoming Events