Criminal charges have been dropped against a former Smithville mayor and his son after restitution was made. Felony theft charges had been leveled against former Smithville Mayor Jimmy Poss and his son, Tony, following the mayor’s hiring of his son to maintain the city’s golf course.

In September, 2017, Tony Poss was put on the city payroll to work at the Smithville Golf Course and Swimming Pool. Tony Poss was alleged to have made $8,100 through the employment.

Mayor Poss was censured by the city’s board of aldermen for his handling of the hiring of his son, which he did without board approval. Anthony Poss was reportedly hired by his father to maintain the golf course and country club facilities owned by the city. However, members of the city board confronted the mayor, some noting there was no proof Anthony worked the hours for which he was paid. Others pointed out RiverWatch had been hired to do the same thing Anthony Poss was reportedly hired to do, making the hiring a duplication of services.

In 2018, the indictments were handed down by the DeKalb County grand jury after they heard evidence uncovered during an extensive probe by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Along with the theft count, charging theft over $2,500, Mayor Poss was also indicted on the charge of official misconduct.

“During the course of the investigation, agents developed information that the two men were responsible for theft through the unlawful payment of wages from Jimmy Poss to Anthony Poss, from August 2017 through March 2018,” the TBI said in its press release concerning the indictments. The probe was a joint investigation with the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury.

In a statement to the Board of Aldermen, Jimmy Poss said, “I want the council and the public to understand that my only goal was to safeguard and maintain the equipment located at the golf course. I want to assure you that it wasn’t a waste of the city’s funds because the equipment must be maintained and my son was the most logical choice. In hindsight, his hiring without council approving may have been a mistake."

Both men were scheduled to appear in DeKalb County Criminal Court last week, but after restitution of the $8,100 was made back to the city, a settlement was reached and the cases against both men have been dismissed.

“We entered an agreement with the defense in which Jimmy and Tony would pay full restitution to the city and the cases would be dismissed against them. The reason we entered that agreement is because Jimmy Poss has been diagnosed with a medical condition, so there was a very real question as to whether we would ever be able to bring him to trial,” said Assistant District Attorney General Greg Strong.