Former Cuyahoga County IT Administrator Pleads Guilty

FEATURED PHOTO: FORMER CUYAHOGA COUNTY IT ADMINISTRATOR EMILY MCNEELY

Patch.com, By Chris Mosby, Posted October 14th 2020

Emily McNeeley was accused of obstructing official business and dereliction of duty, prosecutors said.

A former IT administrator for Cuyahoga County has pleaded guilty to obstructing official business and dereliction of duty.

Emily McNeeley was the latest focus of a corruption probe looking into Cuyahoga County’s government, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said. McNeeley pleaded guilty to multiple misdemeanor charges. She also agreed to work with prosecutors on future corruption cases involving county governance.

“Our prosecutors continue to untangle the snarl of public corruption in Cuyahoga County,” Yost said. “Taxpayers deserve honest, clean, transparent government – the kind that works for the people, not themselves.”

McNeeley was first indicted in January 2019. She was accused of steering county contracts, worth more than $1 million, to Hyland Software, where her spouse was manager of the government contraction section.

The former IT administrator was also accused of recommended a $23 million contract with Ciber ERP, while not disclosing that her family had history with the company. McNeeley’s father, a former Pennsylvania Turnpike commissioner, had previously been convicted of commercial bribery for taking gifts from the company.

Shortly after Cuyahoga County signed a contract with Ciber, Yost said, the company declared bankruptcy and ceased operations.