In the midst of a Port Arthur mayoral race that lately has had more mud flying than a four-wheeler stuck in a Southeast Texas bayou, the Jefferson County District Attorney’s office has made a statement regarding allegations that one of the candidates is guilty of public corruption: He doesn’t have the case in his office.

And, with no case, there are no charges to be filed.

The News on Monday contacted Bob Wortham, who has been DA since January, and asked him the status of a complaint and possible indictment against Derrick Freeman after District 5 Councilman Willie “Bae” Lewis brought documents to the newspaper office two weeks ago. Lewis said the documents proved abuse of the city’s travel policy and would lead to an indictment, if not an arrest.

“We don’t know anything about it. We have nothing in our office to substantiate something being filed,” District Attorney Bob Wortham said.

Both Wortham and Pat Knauth, who has been with the DA’s office for 24 years and now serves as first assistant to the District Attorney, said they couldn’t find a record of the case, or of a complaint made.

If one had been made years earlier, or leftover from the prior district attorney, they could find no evidence of it in their files.

“If (the case) had been accepted, there would be a record of it; there was not one filed,” Knauth said.

This was not the first time Lewis supplied The News with documents he believed proved Freeman’s guilt.

More than two years ago Lewis brought the same paperwork to The News during another election. At the time, Lewis said he and Harold Doucet, who is running for mayor this year against Freeman and Janice Milo, had taken the papers to the Federal Building in Beaumont to present to the newly formed multi-jurisdictional task force. Created to weed out public corruption, the task force had been formed by then Jefferson County District Attorney Corey Crenshaw and John Bales, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas.

The paperwork then and now accuses Freeman of renting a car to drive to the Texas Municipal League Conference in January, then keeping it for an additional 30 days before paying the bill. Freeman did not reimburse the city until April, according to the documents.

In addition to allegations against Freeman, the documents provided by Doucet and Lewis made allegations of wrongdoing against current Port Arthur Mayor Deloris “Bobbie” Prince, former Councilman Bob Williamson and Mike Mason.

That same year Mason ran an unsuccessful race for the District 1 City Council seat against Raymond Scott Jr. while Freeman was victorious in his bid for re-election to the Position 7 seat against Reginald Trainer.

In 2012 Doucet ran unsuccessfully for mayor against Prince.

“Between now and the election in May, I would anticipate that any rumor they can start and any accusation they can make, they will in an effort to get their people elected,” Williamson to The News two years ago in an article published in April 2014.

Freeman has explained all along he never intended for the city to be billed, and that it was a credit card snafu rather than his intent to defraud the city. Furthermore, he paid the city back for the expenditure, and went on to rent the car an additional four months at his own expense while he was in the process of buying a house.

“I already knew there was no record of it,” Freeman said Monday. “When you have done nothing wrong, the DA’s office does not take it up. I am just happy someone did the research with some credibility.”

Freeman said this election cycle his family has been bullied on social media regarding the false allegations.

Doucet weighed in on Freeman’s Facebook page Sunday after Freeman’s sister, Marcie, questioned reimbursements paid to Doucet while he was a Council member conducting city business.

A portion of Doucet’s posting reads, “Now, before I embarrass you and your family by publishing what Derrick has done to abuse the travel ordinance and misappropriate the citizens tax dollars, I advise you to talk with your brother about his actions before you question mine. If you want to talk about me, then get ready to talk about the facts (documentation.) You should make sure you really understand and know what your brother has done before you start questioning my integrity.”

Though this is not the first time he has been the subject of negative campaign tactics, Freeman said he will not let it deter him from his work to make Port Arthur a better place.

“When I get attacked with the negative, it made me work harder in the positive direction, to move our city as far away from the negativity as possible. But, I do feel vindicated,” Freeman said. “Whether it’s me or another candidate, they are constantly attacking. I just wish they would start doing something positive.”

The News also talked with Doucet Monday, who indicated the DA not having a case or file against Freeman does not prove anything.

Doucet said the documents were not allegations and would speak for themselves.

When The News asked Doucet for comment about the DA’s office not having a case against Freeman when Wortham’s office had made a rash of cases against other city employees in recent months, Doucet said the DA was not the only ones to get a copy of the documents.

“I gave you a copy of it; your publisher got it,” Doucet said. “Y’all have the paperwork, y’all make the determination.”

Doucet went on to make a formal comment, which The News read back to him for accuracy.

“When it comes down to the facts the Councilman went to get a rental car for city business for a three-day conference and did not turn the car in,”Doucet said. “When he did turn it in, 30 days later, he did not reimburse the city, the city paid for it. Six weeks later when another council found out about it, he went and paid for it.”

After The News read Doucet his statement he said he wanted to retract it, and had three witnesses who heard him ask that his statement be taken off the record.

The News told Doucet that once a statement is issued on the record it stands, and will not be retracted.

Doucet then hung up and called The News publisher, leaving a message that he planned to sue the paper if his statement was published.

No charges have been filed against any of the others included in the accusations made by Lewis and Doucet two years ago.

E-mail: sherry.koonce@panews.com

Twitter: sgsturdivant