The executive assistant in the Sequatchie County executive’s office was making money performing weddings during work hours at the County Courthouse, a state comptroller’s investigative report shows.
The executive assistant, unnamed in the report, officiated eight wedding ceremonies during her work hours between June 1, 2022, and July 30, 2023, the report states.
“Of the eight couples married by the executive assistant, six stated that the executive assistant charged them a ‘notary fee,’ ranging between $50 and $100, for performing their civil wedding ceremonies,” the report states. “Two of the couples wedded by the executive assistant provided investigators with evidence of their payments, $100 each, to the executive assistant. Investigators were unable to find any evidence that the executive assistant remitted any of the fees she collected back to the executive’s office.”
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The executive assistant gave investigators two different accounts of operations, according to the report.
“Investigators spoke anonymously with the executive assistant on three occasions to inquire about her civil wedding ceremony services, and on all three occasions, the executive assistant told investigators that her services would cost $100 in addition to any marriage license costs from the clerk,” the report states. “However, when investigators interviewed the executive assistant, she claimed that she did not charge a fee for her civil wedding ceremony services.”
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The problem arose following changes in how the county government provided wedding-related services, according to County Executive Keith Cartwright. The same change is also noted in the report.
The county has a population of about 16,000 people who elect the county executive, who oversees the daily operations of the county, and county clerk, who provides various services to residents, including issuing marriage licenses for which the clerk charges. Under state law, the county clerk charges $40 to file a marriage license for couples who attend four hours of premarital counseling and $100 to file a marriage license without attending the counseling. County executives are eligible to solemnize wedding ceremonies and may accept gratuities for the solemnization but are prohibited from charging a fee or demanding compensation, the report states.
“Prior to 2023, the clerk’s employees charged a $10 officiating fee to perform civil wedding ceremonies, and these fees were remitted to the clerk’s office,” the report states. “When the clerk’s office opted to end its civil wedding ceremony service, employees began to refer couples seeking a civil wedding ceremony to an executive assistant working in the executive’s office. The executive assistant is a notary public. Notaries public are entitled to demand and receive reasonable fees for their services.”
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In a review of county records ranging from January to June 2023, investigators found “the executive assistant performed more civil wedding ceremonies than any other officiant in Sequatchie County,” the report states. “The executive assistant advertised and performed civil wedding ceremonies during her working hours for personal gain.”
The practice was stopped as soon as problems were identified, Cartwright said in a phone interview. The matter was discussed with comptroller’s office staff and District Attorney Courtney C. Lynch months ago.
“There were no findings and no laws broken,” Cartwright said. “We’ve moved on.”
Cartwright said the deficiency noted by the Comptroller’s Office in the report — the lack of a written policy dealing with referrals for wedding officiating by employees of the county executive’s office — was valid and has been addressed.
Steve Strain, deputy district attorney in Lynch’s office, said in a phone interview that no wrongdoing was found.
“We didn’t feel it was a criminal violation,” Strain said.
Contact Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.