criminal charges

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
December 11th, 2002	On December 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Robert E. Martin, Jr., a former member of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to one count of harboring a fugitive, Elizabeth J. George, who was previously indicted for embezzlement. As part of the plea agreement, Martin agreed to pay Local 9336 $900.71 in restitution. Martin was released on bond after being incarcerated since September 9, 2002 on the harboring charge. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General.
July 12th, 2002	On July 12, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Edward A. Ramsey, former president of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to conspiracy to embezzle union funds and make false entries in union books, and two counts of embezzlement of union funds. Both parties stipulated that the amount of loss attributable to the defendant was $5,065.76. The charges had been brought on February 19, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General.
July 12th, 2002	On July 12, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, William E. Fricker, former president and grievance committee chairman of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to conspiracy to embezzle union funds and two counts of embezzlement of union funds. Both parties stipulated that the amount of loss attributable to the defendant was $6,372.29. The charges had been brought on February 19, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General.
July 12th, 2002	On July 12, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Rhonda L. Creed, former vice-president of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to embezzle union funds and make false entries in union books. Both parties stipulated that the amount of loss attributable to the defendant was $3,122.64. The charges had been brought on February 19, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General.
July 11th, 2002	On July 11, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Joseph W. Burress, former financial secretary of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to conspiracy to embezzle union funds and make false entries in union books, and two counts of embezzlement of union funds. The parties stipulated that the amount of loss attributable to the defendant was $3,100.10. The charges had been brought on February 19, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General.
February 19th, 2002	On February 19, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Joseph Buress, Rhonda Creed, William Fricker, and Edward Ramsey, former officers of Steelworkers Local 9336, and Elizabeth George, former administrator of the local's disaster relief fund, were indicted on charges of conspiracy to embezzle union funds and making false entries in union records. This scheme involved $10,000 in false or excessive lost time payments. They were also charged with embezzling approximately $11,250 in union funds and making false entries in the benefit fund's records in a scheme involving fraudulent payments from the fund. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General.