DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — The former DeKalb County superintendent who is facing multiple federal charges for stealing money from another school district is now under investigation in DeKalb.
According to records, Dr. Devon Horton paid his friend $25,000 to speak during the district’s convocation, plus another $20,000 for his books.
The former superintendent did not need anyone’s approval to spend that amount of money, according to current policy.
“There should be some policies to prevent that,” Joel Edwards with Renew DeKalb told Channel 2’s Tyisha Fernandes.
Renew DeKalb is a group that focuses on highlighting corruption and making sure public money is spent wisely.
Edwards and many others are waiting for the district to finish their forensic audit into how much of DeKalb’s money Dr. Devon Horton spent during his two years as superintendent.
“How can you hire a superintendent and give him carte blanche he can do what he wanna do?” he said. “It’s taxpayers’ money. That’s why we’re in the situation we’re in now. This been going on since 2002, and it’s still going on.”
Channel 2 Action News was the only station to obtain the records that show Horton paid his friend Gianno Caldwell for his appearance at the July 2025 convocation.
Fernandes sent interim Superintendent Norman Sauce an email asking for a comment on the spending. A district spokesperson replied with a statement:
“The Board approved an external audit to be conducted following Dr. Horton’s resignation. This action reflects the Board’s commitment to transparency, accountability, and ensuring that all matters are reviewed thoroughly and appropriately.”
When the school board hired Horton two years ago, they knew the feds were investigating him for fraud charges he now faces in Illinois
Edwards says the board needs to be fired for bringing Horton to DeKalb.
“They all played a part in it, you know? So, there has to be some consequences, because right now we’re going through the same thing - replacing a superintendent. How many times do we have to do this? I mean, it’s embarrassing for DeKalb County,” he said.
According to policy, the only time a DeKalb County superintendent has to get permission to spend taxpayer money is when it’s over $100,000, so Horton did not need anyone to sign off on Caldwell’s pay.
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