John Dee Carruth, the former president/CEO for the conserved Alabama One Credit Union of Tuscaloosa, Ala., has filed a formal appeal against the Alabama Credit Union Administration and its administrator, Sarah Moore, pressing them to show cause as to why the ACUA should not relinquish control of the credit union and its assets.
According to the appeal, filed in the Circuit Court of Tuscaloosa County Tuesday, Carruth wants the ACUA to show cause before the court within two weeks of the complaint's filing, return the credit union to the possession and control of Alabama One's board of directors, reinstate the board and all other employees who were terminated upon its conservatorship, and award court-determined monetary damages "as a result of the ongoing harm and losses sustained by the credit union during the period of the 2013 suspensions through the present as a result of the ACUA's control and conduct."
The complaint deemed the ACUA's decision to conserve the credit union on Aug. 27, 2015 "unreasonable, arbitrary and motivated by ill will," and said it was not supported by any substantial evidence.
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"Alabama One's management has a track record of working diligently with the regulators to improve the credit union," the complaint read. "The ACUA lacks substantial evidence that either (a) the action is necessary to conserve the assets of Alabama One or the interests of its members; (b) Alabama One's Board of Directors consented to the action of the ACUA; (c) there was a willful violation of a cease and desist order which had become final; or (d) there was a concealment of books, papers, records or assets of the credit union or refusal to submit books, papers, records, or affairs of the credit union for inspection to any examiner or to any lawful agent of the ACUA."
Attorney Augusta S. Dowd of the Tuscaloosa-based firm White Arnold & Dowd, who is representing Carruth during the appeal process, said the former credit union CEO made the move in defense of his constitutional rights.
"John Dee Carruth filed this appeal because the ACUA and Sarah Moore violated the law and his constitutional rights in the manner in which they took over Alabama One Credit Union and terminated its long term management and leadership," Dowd said in a statement. "Mr. Carruth looks forward to the neutral playing field and transparency that the judicial system provides, given that the administrative process to date has been goal oriented and completely nontransparent."
Robert P. Reynolds, an attorney for Moore, told CU Times that the ACUA was expecting Carruth's appeal and has complete confidence that the ACUA board's decision to take control of the credit union will be upheld. He noted that the ACUA board is composed of CEOs from other credit unions throughout Alabama, making it a "jury of peers, so to speak."
The ACUA plans to file its response to the appeal this Friday or Monday, Reynolds said.
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Natasha Chilingerian
Natasha Chilingerian has been immersed in the credit union industry for over a decade. She first joined CU Times in 2011 as a freelance writer, and following a two-year hiatus from 2013-2015, during which time she served as a communications specialist for Xceed Financial Credit Union (now Kinecta Federal Credit Union), she re-joined the CU Times team full-time as managing editor. She was promoted to executive editor in 2019. In the earlier days of her career, Chilingerian focused on news and lifestyle journalism, serving as a writer and editor for numerous regional publications in Oregon, Louisiana, South Carolina and the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition, she holds experience in marketing copywriting for companies in the finance and technology space. At CU Times, she covers People and Community news, cybersecurity, fintech partnerships, marketing, workplace culture, leadership, DEI, branch strategies, digital banking and more. She currently works remotely and splits her time between Southern California and Portland, Ore.
