The Earlville Village board accepted the resignation of Mayor Toni Campbell Monday night and voted to remove her name from municipal checking and savings accounts in the wake of her arrest on larceny charges. Campbell’s resignation letter was dated July 3, the day she was charged with third-degree grand larceny, a felony. State police said the 36-year-old spent more than...
The Earlville Village board accepted the resignation of Mayor Toni Campbell Monday night and voted to remove her name from municipal checking and savings accounts in the wake of her arrest on larceny charges.
Campbell’s resignation letter was dated July 3, the day she was charged with third-degree grand larceny, a felony. State police said the 36-year-old spent more than $42,000 using a credit card issued to Chenango Valley Pet Foods in Sherburne, where she worked as financial manager.
During questioning, Campbell told police said she had never stolen from the village, where she had served as mayor for five years.
“Effective immediately, I am resigning my position as mayor of the village of Earlville,” the letter read.
It was signed, “Thank you, Toni Campbell.”
The news of Campbell’s arrest came as a shock to the rural community of 750 residents on the border of Madison and Chenango counties. Monday night’s board meeting – where the top agenda item would have been a review of Earlville Community Days - was moved to the village fire hall to accommodate the crowd of more than two dozen residents.
After meeting in executive session to discuss “personnel matters,” the four-member village board appointed current trustee Mark Doeberl to finish Campbell’s term, which will end March 31, 2011.
Doeberl, who has served on the village board for nearly five years, said immediate leadership was needed to shepherd the village through a long-awaited water project scheduled to break ground later this month.
The $3.2 million project will require an audit of the village books by an independent firm to receiving funding through the United States Department of Agricultural Rural Development.
Doeberl said an audit of village finances by the state comptroller last year found no irregularities.
“Everything has been reconciled with no discrepancies,” Doeberl said. “At this point, the village appears to be fine.”
Trustee Gerald Hayes said he planned to personally review the accounts to better understand the municipality’s finances.
Trustee William Excell said the former mayor worked hard to make the village a better place. Excell, who called Campbell “a very good friend,” was appointed to the village board by the former mayor.
“She worked hard,” he said. “A lot of people have told me to tell her that we support her.”