PRESS RELEASE
Today, a Polk County Grand Jury returned a true bill of indictment against former Polk County Coroner, Lester C. (“Trey”) Litesey, on charges of felony Theft by Taking and felony Violation of Oath by Public Officer.
District attorney, Jack Browning, presented the case to the grand jury, assisted by lead investigator, GBI agent Mandy Rowlen.
Following the opening of the indictments returned by the grand jury, which included the Litesey indictment, Browning stated, “it’s never a proud day in the career of a District Attorney to have to present the alleged wrongdoings of another public officer to a Grand Jury for possible criminal prosecution. However, whenever a person who has taken an oath to serve and uphold the public’s trust, and fails to do so, particularly by using his or her office of public trust to commit a criminal act, then that person must be held responsible for that violation of the public’s trust.”
Browning said at this time it would be inappropriate to discuss or comment on any specifics of the case, but only that Mr. Litesey’s case will follow the path of any other case on the criminal docket; that is, Mr. Litesey will be arrested and permitted to post a bond, which has been set in the amount of $10,000; his case will be arraigned during the next month, and then placed on a trial calendar.
In that regard, Browning added that, “as with the recent Polk county Facebook murder case I tried late last year, which took only a few months to take from arrest to trial, I will likewise try to move this case as quickly as possible.”