OKTIBBEHA COUNTY – A former tax assessor’s office employee is suing her old boss and the county administrator, alleging she was demoted and later fired for reporting them to the state auditor’s office.
In a federal complaint filed June 6 in the U.S. District Court of Northern Mississippi in Aberdeen, Carol Vaughn claims Tax Assessor JoHelen Walker and County Administrator Delois Farmer violated her First Amendment rights, both Mississippi public policy and its whistleblower statute and maliciously interfered with her employment. The suit also alleges racial discrimination.
Vaughn, who worked as a deputy clerk/bookkeeper in the tax assessor’s office for six years, is white. Both defendants are Black.
A civil complaint represents only one side of a legal argument.
The complaint alleges that about two years ago Vaughn learned Walker, then a deputy clerk in the tax assessor’s office was “directing and participating in the theft of county funds” by allowing select city taxpayers to be taxed at the lesser county rate. Walker falsely listed these taxpayers as living outside the city limits, the complaint reads.
Vaughn alleges the scheme began when Walker began campaigning for tax assessor/collector, a race she won in November 2023, and for “the apparent political advantage of endearing herself to prominent citizens, Starkville police officers, and others whom she believed would provide valuable political support.” Walker often “bragged” that employees who assisted Starkville police would “have no problem having tickets fixed,” the complaint reads.
Vaughn reported the alleged theft to the State Auditor’s Office on Nov. 17, after Walker had won the election, according to the complaint. She described it in detail Nov. 30 to State Auditor Investigator Scott Floyd, noting the theft was widespread and intentional.
On Jan. 3, after Walker took office, the complaint claims Vaughn was demoted and her pay decreased to $8 an hour. During that conversation, Walker and Farmer, who was present, told Vaughn they knew she turned them in to the auditor’s office, the complaint reads. They also berated Vaughn for coming to work early.
Vaughn refused to resign, the complaint reads, and she was instead fired Jan. 9.
“There was no reason to fire her other than (her) going to the state auditor,” Tupelo-based attorney Jim Waide, who is representing Vaughn, told The Dispatch on Wednesday.
The complaint notes that’s not a legal basis for termination, a violation of her free speech, whistleblower and state policy protections. The defendants maliciously interfered with her employment, it reads, by firing her for non-work-related reasons.
Further, the complaint claims Walker replaced Vaughn with a “far lesser-qualified Black person,” and since there was “no valid, legitimate reason” for Vaughn’s firing, “it’s likely her race (white) was a contributing factor.”
Vaughn wants a jury trial, actual and punitive damages, attorney’s fees and reinstatement to her job.
When contacted Wednesday, Rob Roberson, the attorney who represents the Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors, did not discuss the specifics of the case.
“It’s been handed over to our insurance carrier, and they are handling the investigation,” he said.
Starkville Mayor Lynn Spruill, when contacted Wednesday, said she was not aware of the content of the lawsuit or any allegations of city police officers receiving favors from the tax assessor’s office. If an auditor’s investigation reveals that was the case, she said, the city would take appropriate action.
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
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