Guilty Pleas

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
May 24th, 2022	On May 24, 2022, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Verdine Day, former Treasurer of International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 344, Detroit Fire Fighters Association (located in Detroit, Mich.), was sentenced to 12 months and 1 day in prison and 24 months of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay $220,044 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. On December 2, 2021, Day pleaded guilty to bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1344. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Labors Office of Inspector General.
December 2nd, 2021	On December 2, 2021, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Verdine Day, former Treasurer of Detroit Fire Fighters Association, International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 344 (located in Detroit, Mich.), pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud for embezzling $220,044, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1344(2). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Labors Office of Inspector General.
September 7th, 2017	On September 7, 2017, in the Jefferson County, New York District Court, Ronald G. Watson, former Treasurer of International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 105F (located in Fort Drum, N.Y.), pled guilty to criminal possession of a forged instrument in the third degree. He was then sentenced to one year of conditional discharge and was ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution within 10 days. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office.
February 20th, 2013	On February 20, 2013, in the Circuit Court of Fauquier County, Virginia, Daniel Kramer, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local I-45 (located in Newport News, Va.), pled guilty to one count of disorderly conduct, in violation of Virginia Code 18.2-415, for stealing $472.73 from the union. Kramer was then sentenced to 12 months in jail, all of which was suspended, five years of probation, and was ordered to pay a fine of $2,500, of which $2,000 was suspended. Kramer was also barred from holding a position in the union for 13 years. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
June 4th, 2010	On June 4, 2010, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Aaron Hunter, former President of Firefighters Local 108F (located in Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.), was charged with one count of making false statements to conceal his embezzlement of union funds. Hunter then pled guilty to the charge. The charge and plea follows an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
April 19th, 2002	On April 19, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Richard Adams, former treasurer of Fire Fighters Local 639, was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment and three years probation and was ordered to make restitution of $144,939.46. He had pled guilty on January 28, 2002, to one count of bank fraud following a joint investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office and the FBI.
January 28th, 2002	On January 28, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Richard Adams, former treasurer of Fire Fighters Local 639, pled guilty to bank fraud for a scheme to deprive the union of $142,715.78. The charges had been brought on January 17, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office and the FBI.