(Southaven, MS) A state lawsuit determined what the Southaven Board of Alderman couldn’t – that former Southaven Mayor Greg Davis’s lavish and unchecked spending of city dollars was over the line.
Board members, who signed off on it for years, finally blew the whistle.
Former Southaven Alderman Ronnie Hale was one of those who asked the state to step in.
He says he is not surprised by the ruling ordering Davis to pay back city money because the months of court testimony was overwhelmingly against Davis.
“We knew it was beyond us on our level. That’s why we contacted the auditor’s office. Now the judge himself saw the evidence was enough to prove that what we were saying all along was wrong was indeed wrong. Now the taxpayers will be getting some money back,” Hale said.
Concerned citizens of Southaven say it’s also a win for the community since many people doubted it would ever happen.
Now some feel the aldermen who allowed the spending should also face action.
“We realized there were things going on that were not quite right. When we found those things we immediately made those corrections and that’s when the battle started,” Hale said. “Did we make mistakes? Sure we did, but we corrected those mistakes as we found them and did the right thing. That’s all anyone could ask for. ”
Some concerned citizens still think there should be something criminal in all of this.
That’s not off the table because Greg Davis still has a criminal embezzlement case in Desoto County, which is set to start in a few weeks.