On August 7, Attorney General Steve Marshall announced the conviction of former Akron Town Clerk Diann Taylor, 43, on felony ethics and theft charges. Taylor appeared in Hale County Circuit Court and pled guilty to the allegations, which included using her office or official position for personal gain and first-degree theft.
Taylor was ordered to pay $110,908.60 in restitution for the unauthorized purchases and withdrawals from the Town of Akron’s bank accounts. Between August of 2017 and November of 2020, Taylor used her access to purchase over $30,000 in goods and services and withdraw over $77,000 in cash from an ATM. She admitted that at least some of these actions were not authorized by the town.
“Public trust is lost when public officials exploit and abuse their access to critical funds and resources. No one is above the law; anyone who commits theft for personal gain will be prosecuted,” Attorney General Marshall stated.
The Attorney General’s Special Prosecutions Division began the investigation and presented the case to a Hale County grand jury in April of 2021. The grand jury returned an indictment that same month.
Taylor served as the clerk of the Town of Akron for over two years. At her plea hearing, she received a sentence of 35 months in prison. However, under the Alabama Sentencing Guidelines, her sentence was suspended, and she was placed on probation for five years. As part of her plea agreement, Taylor committed to making full restitution in the ordered amount.
The Attorney General expressed gratitude to the Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts for their assistance in the case and commended the Special Agents of his Special Prosecutions Division and Assistant Attorney General Nathan W. Mays, who prosecuted the case.
