The Maryland PTA president-elect?s offer of resignation was accepted March 31, current state PTA President Mary Jo Neil confirmed.
Neil denied actively seeking Michael C. Franklin?s resignation, but admitted problems working with the Baltimore County Council of PTAs president.
“I?ve found we have to work together as a team,” Neil said, “and different people have different ideas on what a team is.”
Franklin, president of the Baltimore County Council of PTAs since 2002, is also under heat from local PTA members, amid rumors of mismanagement a school system official acknowledged. Jan Thomas, who was Baltimore County Council of PTAs? operating budget chairwoman for six years, resigned in November because of what some called administrative issues with Franklin.
The Randallstown man denied misappriopriating any funds and said he?d make a review of the PTA?s receipts available.
Tipped by local PTA activists, an investigation by The Examiner found Franklin and his wife, Lelica, also a Baltimore County Council of PTAs board member, have had several brushes with the criminal justice system over the last decade ? unrelated to council .
In 1996, Lelica Franklin was charged, court documents show, with passing a bad check, though the case was not prosecuted. In 2001, a judgment of $986.72 against the couple was awarded to the Pikeswood Village Homeowners Association and settled in 2002. Also in 2001, a judgment of $1,435.57 was awarded to Carrolltown Bank against Lelica Franklin and is not listed as settled. Another judgment against the Franklins in 1997 for $1,586.06, was awarded to Novus Services of Hilliard, Ohio, and according to court records was not settled.
Last year, Lelica Franklin was charged with driving with a suspended registration and received probation before judgment.
In a criminal complaint filed on Nov. 25, 2002, she accused her husband of domestic violence. But the case was not pursued.
“That was actually over an argument we had about how much time I spent doing PTA work,” Michael Franklin said in a telephone interview Tuesday. “The police were called, but we made up.”
Lelica Franklin was unavailable for comment.
Maryland PTA President Neil said Tuesday that she was unaware of any of the past criminal charges regarding Franklin or his wife, adding the committee that nominated him for the president-elect position does not perform a background check. Term limits prevent Franklin from running for Baltimore County Council of PTAs president at the next scheduled elections, April 27.
