The Kimball County Commissioners were presented with two bills for the Kimball County Sheriff’s department at their meeting this week totaling $819,000.

Roger Kaczmarek originally submitted the bills to the Kimball County Sheriff’s Office, but then also submitted them to the county clerk’s office for review by the county commissioners.

The first bill was submitted by Kaczmarek to the Sheriff’s office for moving property owned by Betty Schadegg and subsequently locking it away from her.

The bill states that due to the Sheriff’s actions, Schadegg is unable to use her equipment to make a living. It charges the Sheriff’s office $1000 each day for 273 days, and has a due date of Dec. 10, after which a finance charge will be assessed.

The second of the two bills charges the Sheriff’s office $1000 each day for 273 days as well. The bill states that the Sheriff locked Kaczmarek out of his personal property and used it for storage.

The charges apply to two building storage fees, and is therefore doubled, for a total charge on that bill of $546,000. Again, the invoice due date is Dec. 10, and a finance charge will be applied for late payment.

The late fee charge is written on a statement directly to the commissioners, and is set at 1.5 percent per month, or 18 percent annually for all past due balances. In the statement to the commissioners, Kaczmarek states that the bills will be ongoing until, “people have access to their property.”

Acknowledging that the only knowledge the commissioners have of the issue is that it has happened,  Chairman Rick Soper said, “I don’t know what you want from us because we aren’t involved.”

Kaczmarek said in that statement that the Sheriff’s department refused to give him a detailed summary of the property taken from his farm, and charges that items are now missing.

The statement mentions that the items were expected to be on another person’s property, but they are not there, and that the items that are there were damaged in the May 24 hail storms.

Kaczmarek states the county’s insurance should be responsible for repairing the damaged items, since those items were to be secured by the Sheriff’s department. However, he has been unsuccessful at obtaining the needed insurance information from the Sheriff.

The Sheriff’s department is charged with starting a 7060 Allis tractor and allowing Mike Schadegg’s people to drive said tractor into town with the transmission out of oil, resulting in damage to the tractor. Kaczmarek states that the Sheriff has refused to give him a report regarding a chisel that was stolen of his property as well.

Concluding the statement to the Commissioners, Kaczmarek writes, “I, Roger Kaczmarek, ask for this time at commissioners meeting so you know whats going on and sheriffs dept. and David Wilson can not cover it up anymore.”

Accompanying that statement was a letter dated July 22, 2010 from the law offices of Douglas, Kelly, Ostdiek, and Ossian of Scottsbluff. The letter was sent to David Wilson in regard to a lawsuit in which Kaczmarek was named as defendant. The plaintiff is named as Firstier Bank.

The letter seeks insurance information for the damaged property and a copy of the Sheriff’s report on the chisel Kaczmarek claims was stolen.

Addressing Kaczmarek, Soper said,“I knew you wouldn’t get satisfaction at this meeting.”

Soper asked County Clerk, Cathy Sibal to look into the insurance issue, to which Sibal replied that she had forwarded the request for insurance information, made in July, to NRMA.

Assuring the board that they were not required to anything in this case County Attorney, Dave Wilson reiterates that a court order provided for the reclamation of the disputed property.

This ongoing case between FirsTier Bank and Roger Kaczmarek spans more than three years, accumulating hundreds of documents, orders, counterclaims, and continuances.

 

Sidebar- Timeline

 

-FirsTier Bank filed suit against Kaczmarek  January 10, 2007

-District Court Judge’s order for attachment of property January 16, 2007

-Kaczmarek moved to discharge attachment February 16, 2007

-District Court Judge’s second order for attachment February 21, 2007

-Kimball County Sheriff’s department inventory with pictures March 3, 2010