State seeks 10 years of city records- Probe now criminal case
by Cindy Chang - Times-Picayune (excerpt)

The state attorney general has subpoenaed Mandeville officials for records on all companies that have done business with the city for the past 10 years, including the engineer and the local developer who bankrolled Mayor Eddie Price's Pebble Beach golf vacations.

Rick Meyer and Don McMath also received subpoenas Tuesday for logbooks of the private planes they allegedly used to fly Price to Pebble Beach. The subpoenas asked for records relating to the planes as well as contracts, invoices and other documents involving the two men's business dealings with the city of Mandeville.

The criminal investigation stems from a state audit released Aug. 11 that described all-expenses-paid trips Price took courtesy of Meyer, McMath and other city contractors or developers. The audit criticized Price and other officials for charging personal travel to their city credit cards, not properly documenting meals billed to taxpayers and awarding contracts without a public bidding process.

The subpoenas say Mandeville officials and the companies mentioned in the audit might be liable for "numerous potential violations of state law."

Beyond the charges in the audit, state investigators have also received "confidential information regarding potential wrongdoing by officials of the city of Mandeville," Assistant Attorney General Harold "Butch" Wilson wrote in the subpoenas.