JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The former executive vice president of Duval Teachers United, a union for Duval County education employees, is expected to plead guilty to conspiring to steal more than $1.2 million over nearly 10 years.
According to the Department of Justice, former DTU President Teresa (Terrie) Brady, 69, and former Executive Vice President Ruby George, 81, got the money by selling back leave time they had not accrued or earned back to the teachers union between 2013 and 2022.
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The indictment said the two withheld the activity from the DTU’s auditors by signing each other’s checks, hid the payments from the DTU’s Secretary/Treasurer, and withheld the funds from Florida’s Public Employee Relations Committee (PERC) in required yearly financial statements.
PERC is responsible for public labor unions in Florida.
Brady is accused of using money obtained from the fraud to pay off more than $10,000 of credit card debt.
On Monday, US Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced the unsealing of an indictment that accuses Brady and George of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, eight counts of aiding and abetting wire fraud, and three counts of aiding and abetting mail fraud.
Brady is also accused of two counts of money laundering.
George and Brady each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count, while Brady faces a maximum penalty of 10 years on each count of money laundering.
“The indictment notifies Brady and George that the United States intends to recover at least $2,600,235.99, which are alleged to be proceeds obtained from the fraud,” the DOJ said.
Duval Teachers United (DTU) is a labor union that represents Duval County Public Schools teachers, paraprofessionals, and office personnel. The union has about 6,500 members and represents about 80% of eligible DCPS employees.
The union’s annual revenue is about $5 million, which is made up of due fees paid by members.
On Sept. 6, 2023, the FBI raided the DTU building in San Marco and told News4JAX that it served a search warrant at the office, but did not release any information about the investigation.
According to the Florida Times-Union, the raid involved the “potential misappropriation of funds.”
Both Brady and George retired shortly after the raid.
Brady served as the president of the teacher union for over 20 years. Brady is a former member of the Democratic National Committee and leader of the Florida and Duval County Democratic Party. According to the Tampa Bay Times, Brady presided over statewide victories for the Democrats in Lawton Chiles’ re-election in the 1994 governor’s race and President Clinton’s Florida victory in 1996, the first victory for a Democratic presidential candidate in Florida in 20 years. She stepped down from her role as Chairwoman of the Florida Democratic Party in 1998 to focus on her role in DTU, the Times reported.
DTU sent a long statement addressing the indictments and the safeguards that were put in place. The statement said in part:
“This will never happen again! Over a year ago, DTU was made aware that the FBI and IRS were investigating former President Terrie Brady and former Vice President Ruby George related to misappropriation of funds. Neither the Duval Teachers United organization nor any current employees were subjects of the investigation which was conducted. The new leadership has been cooperating fully with law enforcement to support a full and thorough investigation. DTU will pursue all legal channels to recoup lost funds and hold those responsible accountable…”
Brady and George initially pleaded not guilty to the charges and were scheduled to go on trial in September.
However, court records show George is set to enter a guilty plea on Monday, Aug. 4.
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