Ex-Elmhurst School Official Avoids Criminal Charges Tied To Credit Card Use

ELMHURST, IL – A former top Elmhurst school official who spent more than $50,000 on his public credit card for personal purposes such as booze and cigars won't be charged criminally, police said.

Through a public records request, Patch last week obtained the police report on the investigation into Todd Schmidt's credit card use. He is Elmhurst School District 205's former facilities director.

According to the report, prosecutors in the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office denied charges against Schmidt because supervisors who knew about Schmidt's activity did not report it to the police before the expiration of the three-year statute of limitations.

Also, the report said, Schmidt did not show he intended to permanently deprive District 205, noting he regularly reimbursed the district.

By contrast, downstate prosecutors years ago arrested a mayor on official misconduct charges for his credit card use, even though he had paid back the money

A year ago, Schmidt, who was hired in 2018, resigned days after Rockford police arrested him on felony charges. Authorities alleged he stole tens of thousands of dollars from his mother. Patch reported on his credit card use last December.

According to the police investigation, the school district started analyzing Schmidt's spending two days before Thanksgiving last year. That was the same day that Patch reported on Schmidt's arrest and filed a public records request on his credit card use. The spending on personal items started in November 2018 and largely tapered off after December 2021.

Days before he resigned, Schmidt, who had been in the Winnebago County Jail for a short time, met with district officials at the central office. Asked about his personal expenses, Schmidt declined to give a reason, but said he felt he could use the card for such purposes because he regularly paid back the district, according to the report.

Schmidt said his supervisor was aware of his personal purchases, the report said. His supervisor was Chris Whelton, then-assistant superintendent of finance. Last February, Whelton reached an agreement with the school board to resign after 14 years in the position. It was a move largely seen as a response to the credit card issue.

Police also interviewed others in the district, apparently including Whelton. Because of the report's redactions, it was unclear who exactly the police spoke with.

One person interviewed said he wanted an attorney with him. The man said he had "very minimal knowledge" that Schmidt was using his credit card for personal purchases, according to the report.

The man said he was only once made aware that Schmidt was using the card in such a way and that he confronted Schmidt. In response, Schmidt said he mistakenly used the district's card and that it looked similar to his personal one, the report said.

Schmidt showed both cards to the other man, and they did, in fact, look similar to the person, according to the report.

The man, who denied ever being told more than once about the personal use, declined to answer any more questions, police said.

The district provided the police with a document titled "Executive Summary of Findings" related to the credit card use. (The district hasn't released this record in response to Patch's previous document requests. It only divulged a four-page report from an accounting firm that did not mention Schmidt's spending.)

The summary indicates that some employees were not subject to the same checks and balances on credit card use required of everyone else, according to the police report. Redactions in the report make it unclear which employees.

"Due to the volume of purchases, they were exempt from oversight," the police report said.

The executive summary said a female employee reported to a male employee every month that Schmidt was using his credit card for personal purposes, but the male employee said he was notified once or twice in total, the police report said. Both times, he addressed it, and the money was paid back.

The summary said the female employee recalled multiple conversations with Schmidt about the spending and that she even heard yelling, according to the police report.

Names were redacted from the summary, but in January 2022, a higher-up appeared to have handled the situation, with Schmidt's personal spending largely ending, police said. Only about $1,000 in personal spending occurred after that.

During his years in Elmhurst, Schmidt oversaw $168 million in referendum projects, including the demolition and rebuilding of two elementary schools.

Patch filed a public records request for the executive summary.

The school's spokesperson, Tonya Daniels, did not respond to Patch's questions Monday about the police report.