Officials Sentenced

Office of Labor-Management Enforcement

The Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) conducts both civil and criminal investigations of alleged violations of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) and related laws.

These investigations by OLMS District Offices involve issues such as embezzlements of union funds, union officer elections, the filing of required reports by unions and others with OLMS, and the imposition of trusteeships over subordinate unions by a parent body. These investigations may result in legal enforcement actions.

Date	Description
July 2nd, 2003	On July 2, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Joleen Coughlon, former office secretary of Laborers Local 177, was sentenced to four years probation and ordered to pay $6,445 in restitution. Coughlon had previously pled guilty on March 27, 2003, to embezzling union funds and making a false entry in union records. Coughlon was charged following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
May 9th, 2003	On May 9, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Clyde Howard Starkey, former member of Laborers Local 177, was sentenced to six months imprisonment, three years probation, and ordered to make restitution of $28,905. Starkey was indicted on November 20, 2002 and on January 16, 2003, he pled guilty to conspiring to embezzle union funds. Specifically, Starkey received and cashed $28,905 in union checks (to which he had no legitimate claim) and returned a portion of the proceeds to former Local 177 Business Manager Fred Risius. Risius is currently serving fifteen months in the penitentiary for embezzling in excess of $100,000 from the local. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
March 6th, 2003	On March 6, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Craig Michael, a member of Laborers Local 177 in Des Moines, was sentenced to five years probation, two months home confinement, and ordered to make restitution of $16,900 jointly and severally with former officers Fred Risius and Henry Jannenga. Michael pled guilty on November 11, 2002 to conspiring to embezzle union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
February 28th, 2003	On February 28, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Fred Risius, former president of Laborers Local 177 in Des Moines, was sentenced to serve 15 months in prison, followed by three years supervised release, and ordered to pay $100,000 in restitution to Local 177. Risius pled guilty on July 25, 2002 to embezzling $100,060 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
February 28th, 2003	On February 28, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Henry Jannenga, former vice-president of Laborers Local 177 in Des Moines, was sentenced to serve three months in prison, followed by three years supervised release including six months home confinement, and ordered to pay $22,500 in restitution to Local 177. Jannenga pled guilty on July 25, 2002 to embezzling $20,460 in union funds. These charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.