Candidate's education called into question again

A transcript of testimony given during a Flathead District Court jury trial in April shows Flathead County Commissioner Cal Scott apparently lied under oath about his education credentials.

Scott, who was appointed interim commissioner on April 16 following Commissioner Jim Dupont’s death in March, is the Republican candidate in the Nov. 6 general election for the remaining two years of Dupont’s term in District 1.

In a story published Oct. 3 in the Daily Inter Lake, Scott denied telling two newspaper reporters he had a civil engineering degree from the University of Nevada. He admitted, however, that he does not have an engineering degree or any other degree from other colleges he attended.

Scott was called as a real estate professional in a civil lawsuit filed by Dewey Cooper against Hilzac Corp. and several other defendants. One of the plaintiff attorneys, Tammi Fisher, who is also the mayor of Kalispell, said she used Scott in the trial to explain the meaning of the term “adverse material fact” as it applies to the real estate industry.

Scott has worked extensively in the real estate industry for much of his life and has owned and managed real estate companies, mortgage banking and escrow companies and real estate finance, development and consulting firms. 

Scott was sworn in during the jury trial and testified on April 16, the very day he was appointed commissioner. He was sworn in as commissioner on April 17.

During the trial, Scott gave the following information while under oath during cross-examination by defense attorney Shelley Brander:

“Q. (Brander) Mr. Scott, is it fair to say when you were a 12-year-old kid catching frogs that you weren’t doing any groundwater investigation?

A. (Scott) That’s true, however, later as an engineer graduate at the University of Nevada --

Q. (Brander) That’s not my question.

A. (Scott) -- in civil engineering I was.

Q. (Brander) That’s not my question.

A resume sent by Scott to Fisher prior to the jury trial also indicates Scott misrepresented his education credentials by stating: “After service in the U.S. Army and college graduation, he entered the real estate business in 1968...”

Fisher said she didn’t know about the discrepancy on Scott’s resume.

“I didn’t know about it, nor would I have had reason to know about it,” she said, adding that she called Scott as a real estate professional, not an engineering expert.

In an email sent to the Inter Lake, Scott said he takes responsibility for the error.

“I have said and it has been reported that I said I did not have an engineering degree,” he said. “I accept the responsibility ... It is done. We all need to move on to take on the needs of the Flathead people. My accomplishments demonstrate that ability.”

Scott took civil engineering courses for three months in 1963 at the University of Nevada before dropping out.

Commissioner Pam Holmquist said she and Commissioner Dale Lauman made the decision to appoint Scott interim commissioner based on the information provided to them.

“I stand by that decision,” she told the Inter Lake on Thursday.

Holmquist and Lauman said earlier they also weren’t aware Scott had filed for bankruptcy when they voted to make him county commissioner until November. Neither thought knowing beforehand about the bankruptcy would have made a difference in their decision.

State law says “a person commits the offense of perjury if in any official proceeding the person knowingly makes a false statement under oath or equivalent affirmation or swears or affirms the truth of a statement previously made when the statement is material.”

Flathead County Attorney Ed Corrigan said a case alleging perjury against a county official would be handled the same as with any other citizen. A complaint would first need to be made to the Sheriff’s Office.

The Sheriff’s Office then would investigate the allegation and forward its findings to the County Attorney’s Office. Because the County Attorney’s Office is the legal counsel for county officials, Corrigan said he would send such a complaint to the state Attorney General’s Office if he believed it warranted further consideration.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.