Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Dallas sheriff’s catered holiday meal plans derailed - by the caterer come off as planned

2,300 department employees may or may not get that elusive free lunch we've all heard about.

By Pegasus News wire

Updated 10:10 a.m., December 22, 2007

Right on the heels of Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez's aborted plan to issue $50 gift cards to deputies issuing the most traffic tickets, her latest brainstorm - involving a catered barbecue meal delivered to all five jails and patrol headquarters during each of three shifts - has also been shot down.

Turns out most of the $19,000 to be spent on the catered meals was to come from the county's discretionary fund (described as "money set aside for special needs"). Also turns out a Dallas County Commissioner named Maurine Dickey (ring any dinner bells?) wasn't consulted about the planned purchase beforehand, and - since her family owns the Dickey's Barbecue restaurant chain which was to supply the food - she decided this transaction might smell of something more than smoked meats and proceeded to put the kabosh on it. The sheriff may now end up footing the bill for the elaborate holiday meal out of her own pocket (the food having already been ordered and all).

Too bad, really. This wasn't a bad idea - just a poorly-planned one.

If there's anyone out there with $16,000 looking for a home, give Sheriff Valdez a call before tomorrow (Dec. 19).

UPDATE: a reader's email alerted us to the fact that the sheriff's meal plans came off as planned: Dan Tomlin III of Tomlin Investments read about the funding concerns and wrote a check for $17,000 to cover the amount that was to have been covered by county discretionary funds (until Commissioner Dickey raised the red flag).

posted by JM

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