The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-02-18
CLEBURNE JUDGE'S $ BOOKS REPORTED
 IN GRAVE TANGLE
State Institutes Suit Against Probate Judge Baber at Heflin to Collect Several
 Thousand Dollars
STATE CAPITAL BUREAU |
 THE AGE-HERALD ! Montgomery. Ala., Feb. IT ]

D. S. Baber. republican probate judge of Cleburne county, has been called into the Cleburne circuit court to show why he should not be forced by legal process to return to the county treasury large amount of money which state examiners of pub lie accounts reported as Having been disbursed without consideration of the laws governing the issuance and payment of county warrants.
 Suit was filed against Judge Baber at Heflin this week by John B. Sam ford. circuit solicitor, and J. c. Mich ols, county solicitor, at the request of Harwell G. Davis. attorney general. It developed today that state ex- aminers of public accounts many months ago reported the condition of Judge Baber's accounts, charged back 8 total of s13,503.S6, and warned him that other warrants issued and not paid totaling s3,591.os, were illegal and void.
 The investigation of the records in the office of Judge Baber as judge of the probate court and as chairman of the commi ssioners' court of Cleburne county was made by c. c. Brooks and William L. Malcomb. examiners of public accounts. At the same time the examiners investigated the books of A. H. Glasgow, county treasurer, reporting them as badly kept.
 Warrants Not Sworn.
 DA l. tho records of the commissioners court, the examiners said: we made a thorough investigation of all war rants drawn on the treasury by the judge of probate, comparing all such warrants with the claims on file and the minutes of the courts in refer ence to the audit and allowance of the claims in payment of which such warrants were drawn. Our investi- gation disclosed the fact that claims were allowed by the court and war rants drawn in payment thereof which were not sworn tosas required by Section 147;. that the Chairman drew warrants on the treasury In payment of claims which had not been audited; that other claims were allowed. ordered paid and warrants drawn in payment thereof where no itemized or verified claims were on file and still others paid where there were neither claims on file nor order allowing. in minutes of the court.
 Tn addition, the chairman of the court admitted that he at times signed the claimants name to claim and had his clerk put his (the judges) thereon as if the same had been sworn to by the claimant be- fore the judge..se
 Acted as Contractor.
 In another section of the report, the examiners stated that their in vestigation brought the information that Judge Baber himself constructed bridge for the county which the contractor refused to construett. al- though nothing on the minutes Of the commissioners court indicated the fact and although the law pro- hibits him from entering into any contract with the county. The re port announced the probate Judge was warned that he could not be reimbursed for the work he did on the bridge and that he held no valid claim against the county.
 Minutes of the commissioners court presided over by Judge Baber were reported as inexcusably vague and indefinite; that there has been no compliance with the law requir- ing publication of receiuts and dis bursements of the county, and that Judge Baber disbursed from bank a highway fund when the law re- quired all county funds to be re- ceived and disbursed by tho county treasurer.
 Says Officials Careless
 In concluding the report on the commissioners court, the examiners said: "The various discrepancies re- ferred to and criticised in this re- port, together with the vague, in definite and complete condition of tho minutes of the court generally show conclusively that the judge of probate as chairman and the mem- bers of the court have been careless, indifferent and negligent in the dis charge of their duties and have shown a complete disregard of linn itation and restrictions of law sur rounding the performance thereof"
 Examiner Malcomb made the re- port on the examination of the records of Judge Baber as probate judge and in concluding it said: In general I find the record in posses sion of Judge Baber had been very badly kept and in many instances he had issued automobile licenses (bsth private and commerciaD and has never made any record of same