Yesterday jurors found what CIETC’s former top three executives were making in salaries and bonuses.
Today prosecutors are trying to piece together how they came about. Prosecutors called to the stand Dianne Bolden, who worked as former CEO Ramona Cunningham’s secretary. Bolden testified that at some point she may have been asked to change CIETC by-laws at Cunningham’s request, though she doesn’t specifically remember doing it. That change enabled former CIETC Board Chairman Archie Brooks to set executive salaries and bonuses.
During her testimony prosecutors played an audio tape of a November 10, 2005 CIETC meeting where Board members talked about executive compensation, including salaries and bonuses. On tape you could hear Cunningham ask that the word “bonus” not be used, because she said the Department of Labor preferred the term “supplemental pay.” Brooks told Board members that executives could get two bonuses a year of up to 15% of their salary.
CIETC Board member Howard Pothoven, a Marion County supervisor, raised concern about the bonuses. “I don’t see it as being very fair to me,” he said. “I think this is bad policy.” After some discussion without specifics of what executives were receiving, the meeting moved on.
Former CIETC C.O.O. John Bargman just took the stand before the lunch break. Earlier in the case he struck a plea deal in exchange for his testimony. Former Des Moines city councilman and CIETC Board chairman
Archie Brooks is here at the courthouse waiting to testify.
It’s all clear now. Ramona Cunningham has been deemed “medically unfit” to testify. This was NO DOUBT planned by John Bargman and Dan Albritton so they can blame EVERYTHING on Ramona Cunningham and receive lesser sentences!