Spokane County Clerk Accused of Turning Court Funds Into His Own Interest Account
C. E. Atkinson was arrested after a grand jury indicted him for depositing litigants’ money to his personal credit and collecting the interest.
Spokane—C. E. Atkinson, clerk of Spokane county, was arrested on a warrant accusing him of using money under his official control for his private benefit. The arrest follows an indictment by the grand jury in Judge Hueneke's court. The specific charge is that Atkinson, as county clerk and ex-officio clerk of the superior court, placed money put in his custody by litigants in the Traders' National Bank to his own credit and drew a monthly interest on the amount deposited.
““...placed money put in his custody by litigants in the Traders' National Bank to his own credit and drew a monthly interest on the amount deposited.””
Public officials who hold other people’s money are still expected to keep it separate—and still get prosecuted when they don’t. The case is a small reminder that fiduciary trust is one of the oldest tests of local government.
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