By Danny Fenster
ticklethewire.com
Funding teen suicide prevention efforts is a laudable act, no doubt. But that all depends, of course, on whether the funding is actually being used for that purpose.
In Detroit, FBI agents are investigating allegations that a fundraiser for Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, who was investigated earlier this year on “pay-to-play” charges, was paid top dollar to host teen suicide prevention forums that never occurred, reports the Detroit News.
For at least two weeks federal agents have been investigating a contract from 2008 to Larry D. Dickerson for hosting 12 school forums for the “Behind Happy Faces Initiative,” as well as other mental health efforts, sources told The Detroit News; but former Commissioner Phil Cavanagh said only two of the forums occurred. Dickerson was paid $70,000 for the forums.
Officials from school districts that were supposed to host the forums said that cannot find any indications the forums occurred, according to the Detroit News.
“With Wayne County and Detroit going bankrupt and emergency managers knocking at the door, how on earth can they afford these kinds of boondoggles?” asked Ralph Kinney, a former Ficano aide.
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