Messamore's trial date set for April 25

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Max Messamore

March 8, 2011

By HEATHER TOMLINSON, CJ Staff Writer Commonwealth Journal The Commonwealth Journal Tue Mar 08, 2011, 07:00 AM EST

Somerset — A trial date has been set for a local youth, middle school and high school coach who stands accused of embezzling money from a postal organization.

Max Edwin Messamore, who was indicted by a grand jury in U.S. District Court in London in late January for allegedly stealing more than $2,000 from a U.S. Postal Service labor organization, is slated to stand trial in the case on April 25, according to electronic court records accessed by the Commonwealth Journal.

Messamore pleaded not guilty to the embezzlement charge during his arraignment on March 1, according to the electronic records.

According to the indictment, between “... Feb. 28, 2006 to Dec. 24, 2007, Messamore, while serving as president of the National Association of Letter Carriers, Branch 2039, ... a labor organization engaged in an industry affecting commerce, did embezzle, steal, and unlawfully and willfully abstract and convert to his own use the moneys and funds of said labor organization in the approximate amount of $2,293.77.”

That’s in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), which prohibits the embe-zzlement and theft of property from a labor organization covered by the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA).

Although labor organizations repres-enting only employees of the United States or state and local governments are not regulated by the LMRDA, the United States Postal Service employees are subject to the LMRDA.

Messamore has worked as a U.S. Postal Service employee.

Messamore was processed and released to await trial after his arraignment earlier this month.

Messamore’s attorney, William Thompson, said on Monday when contacted by the CJ that he can’t comment on any pending criminal case. Thompson was able to confirm that the trial date was set.

If he’s found guilty of the embezzlement charge, Messamore faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000, according to the indictment, which was handed down on Thursday, Jan. 27.

Messamore has been the Meece Middle School head football coach for 15 years. He led the Briar Jumper gridders to the 2009 Small School Middle School state title.

Last fall, Messamore also joined the Somerset High football coaching staff.

Messamore had a stint as the Meece Middle baseball coach, and has coached in youth leagues in Somerset for many years as well.

Messamore helped lead the Somerset High School baseball team to the 1974 state title as an all-state catcher. He also was the SHS quarterback under the legendary Ron Cain in the mid-70s.

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Pulaski carries Girdler to win

In the weeks leading up to Tuesday’s primary election, it was impossible to miss the colorful signs dotting nearly every Pulaski roadway. The names in the race for the 15th State Senatorial District seat popped out: A.C. Donahue. Chris Girdler. Mark Polston.

Once citizens hit the ballots, however, the results mirrored the dimensions of the signs themselves: Chris Girdler stood the tallest.

Girdler, deputy district director for Congressman Harold “Hal” Rogers, ran away with the votes inside Pulaski County’s borders, earning 3,926 votes for 62.05 percent of the total number cast.

That number more than doubled the next highest vote-getter, businessman Mark Polston, who raked in 1,624 votes for 25.67 percent.

However, Polston — who owns Classic Carpet, a home-flooring business located just off the southern 914 bypass — can claim a moral victory ... three of them, in fact. In all three counties in the district other than Pulaski — those being Adair, Casey, and Russell Counties — Polston actually edged out Girdler.

In Adair, Polston beat Girdler 629 to 394. In Casey County, it was 538 to 417, and in Russell, it was 1,862 to 1,038.

Polston said he just “couldn’t pull it out with the numbers” and that “the machine worked for” Girdler in Pulaski County.

“I think that was their strategy — I think they had a Pulaski County strategy all along,” said Polston. “They played the political game well.”

Polston said the difference between his and Girdler’s campaigns was that “mine was a very, very grass roots campaign,” he said. “I did not have a political machine behind me. I understand how this process works, and in this instance, he prevailed.”

As for why Girdler didn’t take three of four counties, the winning candidate — since there are no Democrats in the race, winning the Republican primary was effectively a final victory for Girdler — said he didn’t have an answer for that.

However, “I believe things happen for a reason and I hope the long and strenuous campaign will only heighten my desire to move beyond the bitterness and partisanship of the recent past,” said Girdler.

“Regionalism is a goal of mine, and I look forward to helping all four counties,” he added, noting that he campaigned heavily in each of them.

Sen. Vernie McGaha, the long-time state senator whose seat the candidates were vying for, actually supported Polston after Liberty’s Todd Hoskins dropped out of the race earlier this month.

Donahue, a local attorney, got 556 votes in Pulaski County, 8.79 percent of the vote. He only received 145 votes in Russell County, 74 in Adair County, and 75 in Casey County, where hometown candidate Hoskins almost matched him with 71 votes despite no longer being officially in the race.

Polston said he’s “still digesting” what happened, and though “the process has been a very good experience for me,” he wouldn’t commit to running again in the future. “I wouldn’t shut the door to anything, but I’m not opening any doors either.”

Still, “I think I got a lot of people involved in the process that had not been involved before and would not have been otherwise,” he said. “A lot of people got out and worked really hard, got motivated to talk to friends and neighbors. I think a lot of people became involved through this campaign that are going to be involved for a long time.”

Girdler stressed his “positive message” and said that Rogers is a “mentor and good friend” that he would turn to for advice in dealing with a frequently combative legislative body in Frankfort, one for which Girdler hopes to help change the culture.

Girdler said that he was “confident and optimistic” during the day Tuesday because he’d “worked extremely hard.” Nevertheless, the realization that he’d won gave him “chill bumps,” he said.

“I’m absolutely honored,” said Girdler. “The position of state senator is more than an honor, more than an office. It’s a charge to keep, and I will give it my all.

“I pledge to be the people’s state senator,” he added. “I look forward to working with everyone to move this region forward.”

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