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Noble County Sheriff Landon Smith resigned on May 15, facing charges that he improperly hired his wife as a deputy and used county vehicles to transport jail inmates to his home to do work there.

He is expected to plead guilty to a bill of information June 5 in Morgan County Common Pleas Court.

In 1984, Smith was indicted on a third-degree felony count of theft in office, based on nearly 1,300 phone calls a special prosecutor considered as "personal calls," which cost the county more than $3,000. A jury exonerated Smith of the charge in January of 1985.

In 2003, a Monroe County judge complained that Smith was using an inmate from Monroe County housed at the Noble County jail as a cook at a restaurant the sheriff owned in Belle Valley. The matter was settled after Noble County's prosecutor reached an agreement with the judge that Monroe County inmates could not be trustees without the judge's approval.

Prosecutors are prepared to move forward with as many as 18 charges against former Noble County Sheriff Landon Smith if a plea agreement set for next week falls through.

Smith, 66, resigned his post of more than 35 years May 15 after prosecutors announced an investigation into Smith and detailed impending charges.

Smith is accused of hiring relatives in violation of state ethics codes and of transporting jail inmates to his home to perform garden and lawn chores. He is expected to plead guilty June 5 in Morgan County Common Pleas Court, a venue selected to avoid any appearance of impropriety.

Noble County Prosecutor Cliff Sickler said Thursday he was limited in what he could say about other charges that could be levied against Smith, because if the plea deal falls through the case will be presented to a grand jury for possible indictment.

"The other charges are on the same level as the ones included in the bill of information," Sickler said.

Specifically, Smith is charged with fourth-degree felony unlawful interest in a public contract, related to the nepotism allegations, and a first-degree misdemeanor conflict of interest. The felony charge carries a potential of six to 18 months in prison and a fine of up to $2,500. The misdemeanor charge could bring an additional 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Smith could not be reached for comment Thursday. His attorney, Jack Blakeslee, of Caldwell, did not return a message seeking comment.

Sickler said Smith, who earned $53,888 a year, was eligible to retire approximately 10 years ago. He said Smith would still be eligible to collect a healthy pension from the state.

"I would guess it would be pretty close to what he was currently making," Sickler said.

A message left with the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System was not returned Thursday.

Sickler said the allegation surrounding the inmates at Smith's home also involved the unauthorized use of county vehicles. Delaware County Prosecutor Dave Yost, the special prosecutor assigned to the case, has said he would seek restitution for those incidents.

"That's probably going to be a few thousand dollars" and could be taken from Smith's pension, Sickler said.

Sickler said he warned Smith about the nepotism issue several years ago when he learned the former sheriff's wife was on the payroll.

"I told him he couldn't do that," Sickler said. "For a while, she was taken off the payroll."

When Sickler lost a re-election campaign, Smith's wife, Peggy, was put back on the payroll. She was earning $21,989 a year when she resigned May 15. She has not been charged.

Last November, Sickler was re-elected, but he was unaware that Smith's wife was put back on the payroll. However, the Ohio Ethics Commission had been notified and already launched an investigation.

"A few months ago they contacted me and asked me to document some things," Sickler said.

The investigation spread from there, and included a search warrant being executed at the sheriff's office about two weeks ago.

The search warrant and all other information surrounding the investigation is under seal and will not be released until after Smith pleads guilty or indictments are secured, Sickler said.

Smith's daughter-in-law and a niece are also employed with the sheriff's department, but they were not implicated in the investigation and continue to work at the office. Sickler said nepotism rules may not apply in those instances.

Noble County commissioners appointed Noble County Chief Detective Stephen Hannum to serve as interim sheriff. Hannum was hired by Smith in 1996 as a part-time deputy. Hannum, 55, became a full-time deputy in 1999.