Alliance board members said they were stunned that Pitrolo would abruptly leave the organization.
"To me, Patty Pitrolo was the most talented person in that building," said Charleston Mayor Danny Jones, who also serves on the Alliance's executive board. "I'm really upset about this."
"She's a dynamo," said Jones, who served in the House of Delegates with Pitrolo in the late 1980s. "I'm just very distressed about this. I wish I had a place for her in the city."
Jones said he would have asked the City Council to give money to the Alliance to increase Pitrolo's salary, if he had known earlier that she was upset.
This support, in spite of the fact that she was convicted of tax evasion stemming from an offense that occurred while she held public office:
In 1990, Pitrolo, a former delegate from Hancock County, was charged with failing to report on her taxes that she accepted money from a lobbyist representing Tri-State Greyhound Park.Again, look at what the mayor said:
Before accepting a $376 payment, which helped cover expenses for a vacation, Pitrolo had supported a law that would have allowed Tri-State and other racing tracks to get a bigger share of the money wagered by bettors. She was convicted of a misdemeanor, paid a $1,000 fine and served two years' probation.
Jones, who served in the House of Delegates with Pitrolo in the late 1980s. "I'm just very distressed about this. I wish I had a place for her in the city."Of course, he did find a place for her. Jones publicly ridiculed the previous president and helped create an air of dissatisfaction with other CVB board members until she was terminated under what amounted to be a "no confidence" vote. Patty Pitrolo was immediately hired as "Acting President." It's not clear when the "acting" part of her title was removed.
It's amazing that no one in the media has picked up on this aspect of the story.
