ATTN: Everyone, concerning Riley and his position as CFO

[Mirandha Laflor]

I know the Board position needs to be filled, but I'm wondering why TV.net has not chosen to elect Board members. Even a credit union I used to belong to had its members vote on board positions.

 

[Tazren Talamar]

As for Riley ever returning...I'm not sure if he'll ever want to return. I don't think I would were I in the same situation. There have been cases of embezzling in some of the organizations I've been or am a part of, though, and I think every single one of them says a board member or other member who embezzles money from the organization may become part of the organization again once the money they stole has been returned in full and any judicial punishment served. This kind of thing might be more unforgiveable in the US than here, though...I don't know.

Personally, I would judge it much based on the reason for what was done. An explanation goes a long way to understanding, which could, in turn, eventually, lead to forgiving the person. Now, I feel very unaffected by this, other than the shock value, since I neither knew him nor was affected financially by this. There are some reasons that would be much easier to forgive than others. And some that would not be forgiveable at all. And to me, forgiveness would be the essential part of thinking that it would be alright to return, at some point in the future. (But I will add that I definitely agree that banning him now was good)

 

[Ty al'Djinn]

This. In light of everything, I don't know whether or not he should be prosecuted, and I am glad the decision is not mine. But he should not be allowed back. Unless his reasons were something akin to preventing the apocalypse.

 

[Rehtaeh al'Navi]

I am so terribly saddened and disappointed to hear this...Riley is one of my favorite people to snuggle This is quite disheartening, but Exec made absolutely the right choice...

 

[Elays Saeryn]

How terrible.


We should definately take measures to make sure something like this does not happen in the Future

 

[Hilwa Katir]

Thank you for your post Leora, Eleyan, and Mother...

Even though it has been more than a couple of hours..I am still running the rampart of emotions.. this is a betrayal of the worst order in my mind. Most of us are not rich and save throughout the year..or years as in my case..Riley knows most of our financial situations..there are people who have gone through such a hard time in the past year but would never ever think to steal .. He COULD have come forth and asked, yes it's difficult, but we as a group would have helped.

SO..to get to where I'm at right now...I'm royally pissed... I have no warm and fuzzy feelings towards him right now.. I'm feeling betrayed and against my "personal beliefs" I am saving my prayers, good wishes, well thoughts to those of us who counted him as a Big part of our family.

TarValon.Net is my family and right now we are going through a difficult time..we will get through this..

I love all of you and want you to know it.

 

[Sean Dragoran]

 

[Meirah Zaïde]

I forgive Riley. Absolutely. But it was right that he be banned and right that he stay banned, because what he did was unconscionable. This wasn't a situation where he took a hundred bucks to get groceries one month - he. took. everything. There is no justification for that, no matter what the personal circumstances. If your straits are so dire that you need $10K, you don't steal - you find another solution. There are free financial counseling resources. There are emergency loans. There are almost always options. You don't steal other people's hard-earned, hard-saved money. (You don't do this even if there are no other options - even if you're going to be homeless, stealing from people is not a valid solution.) I find that I can offer forgiveness without feeling much in the way of sympathy for whatever circumstances led to Riley's decision to just dig in and help himself to the pile of money that he was responsible for. Banned for life is what he'd be if I had any say in it.As for criminal charges - whether or not criminal charges are brought against Riley may not even be up to the Board or Execs. IANAL, but I believe that when a crime is committed, it is up to the state prosecutor to decide whether or not charges will be brought against the offender. TarValon.net, Inc. is based in Alabama, and Riley is in New Mexico, so I'm not sure where the jurisdiction lies. And I wouldn't be sorry to see criminal charges filed in this case. I believe that if you're going to commit a crime, you better be ready to take responsibility for the legal consequences, not just the social consequences.

 

[Anika Forsyn]

Well dammit. And no more serenading at Anni. But rightly so. /sigh.

 

[Rehtaeh al'Navi]

Yes, and thank you Mother and Eleyan and all for your wise decision in this matter and for your transparency. I am proud to be part of this community.

 

[Kitan Tataru]

I found out about this today just after I got off work. I'm glad I found out AFTER work and not during, or I would have been even more of a mess.

I'm in shock, but that shock is turning to anger.

THIS is the thing that gets me:

Riley is a licensed mental health counselor and recently finished his master's degree in mental health counseling. His job is helping people who are mentally ill, addicted to drugs, seriously physically/sexually/verbally/emotionally abused and traumatized put their lives together and, to an extent, understand morality. It is his JOB to help teach people, on a daily basis, about boundaries, responsibility, trust, relationships, appropriate behavior, and what is right and what is wrong.

So he knows​ that embezzling is wrong. He knew when he was doing this what kind of trust he broke. He knew better than most people the implications of these actions.

Yet he did it anyway.

This entire situation is giving me incredible sorrow.

I wasn't close with Riley, but he was always there. He was like a rock. I spent time with him at almost every official event I've been at, and some unofficial ones too.

I respected him immensely. Now I just feel lost.

He could have ASKED us for help and we would have given it to him. And he knew that.

I've donated to the Tower several times during my membership, not nearly as much as I'd like, but I've done it even though it's been incredibly difficult for me financially. Donating to the Tower has always been a real sacrifice for me, but I've done it, and Riley has embezzled from it.

But for those expressing mourning for the nice guy he was, forgive him for his weakness and forgive yourself; because I was in a situation like this when a friend betrayed and I beat myself up for trusting him, but honestly your instincts weren't wrong. He was that nice guy you thought, but if he really did this out of desperation and not greed then it was situations that drove him to it. So don't beat yourself up for trusting him. Just don't forget either.

I really like what Alora said about forgiving ourselves...he is a nice guy, there's no way we could have seen this coming.

As said, we have banned people for looking into others' accounts. We have banned people for being cruel. We have banned people for taking others' money in good faith for services never rendered. Now we are banning someone for draining our entire budget, embezzling thousands in his role as CFO and Chairman of the Board of Directors, the highest financial position and Board position available. I cannot fathom a single reason why he should ever deserve to return.

And I agree with Sela. Riley wasn't just an average member who stole from us. He was in a very trusted position. Not only was he our Chief Financial Officer - which is incredibly significant, of course - he was also the head of the group of people that has the ability to fire the Amyrlin: Chairman of our BOARD.

And I'm honestly thinking that prosecuting this in a court of law may be the proper course to take. What Riley did is at least one felony, one of the most serious types of crimes in the United States. I'm sure he knew this. If this wasn't such a serious crime I'd consider the merits of letting it go...but this is a felony. It's a criminal offense. Justice must be served, despite how painful it is for everyone involved...

EDIT:

I would like to thank all of our executives, directors, officers, and board members for the excellent handling of this situation.

And I would also like to especially thank Mother. Mother, you have stood up and taken leadership in this horrible situation, and done it with all the grace and composure that could ever be asked of any Amyrlin, in our world or in the books. I am so proud that you are our Amyrlin Seat. You have taken control of the situation and, with the help of our other leaders, you are steering us in the right direction financially, professionally, and most of all, emotionally. You are a huge reason that the Tower is not breaking and will not break over this. If you were here with me in person right now, I'd kneel and kiss your ring. Seriously. I already knew you were an amazing woman, but now I have even more respect for you. I really don't have words for how proud I am of you and how happy I am to be under your leadership.

Tai'shar Tar Valon!

 

[Riveille Anjeytal]

This is a sad day, and sad week for us Blues. I'm thankful to the admins and board and hall for all the tough decisions they've had to make recently.

Quoted for truth.

 

[Laralelle Susandrea]

Ok, I've had time to process. Not that anyone necessarily wants to hear my thoughts, but I want to post them.

I agree with Meirah and....Sela, maybe (sorry, can't remember who posted that). This site has shown hundreds of times that it will help someone out when it is needed. I have seen people given money to others to attend events, pay bills, or buy food. I myself have been offered (without asking) money to help me do various things. As embarrassing as it would have been, as hard as it would have been, he could have come to this internet family for help. He chose not to. He chose to steal, chose to betray our trust, and he has to now live with the consequences. Thinking unemotionally, I actually feel that prosecution is the way to go.

However, thinking emotionally, I feel for him. I can only imagine how desperate he must have felt, and how utterly hopeless he felt his situation was that he needed to do this. I'm heartsick for him. And I forgive him. If I were going to fall ball I would have sat down and cried after having read this news, thinking about all the money that I saved and spent on this trip. But I would still forgive him. It's ok if you're not in a place where you are able to do this.

 

[Pip al'Dealys]

As much as this has Hirt the community as a whole, is there a way we can help out the people who have committed to attending Fall Ball in regards too repatriating their money? I'm all up for donating to the community and I'm sure that many with contribute to helping the innocent in this situation.

 

[Caerwyn Jolan]

Pip - there's a thread about Fall Ball Contingency plans in the Events/Fall Ball forum

 

[Mhor Blathnaid]

:kiss

 

[Kaldam Luciere]

Well..........I've had a good long think about this.

I'm new, inexperienced, and still finding my way around the organisation of the tower. So my opinion probably doesn't really matter in the greater scheme of things. I only met Riley on CE, but I respected his views and his opinions and his position as a senior member in good standing.

But this.....

This is a daunting thing to hear for a new member, particularly one who is looking to get further involved in the community at large. That someone who, from what I've read, was completely trusted and reliable could commit such an act of betrayal to a non-profit organisation is outrageous. I feel for everyone who is directly affected by this, the timing of this just before Fall Ball is horrific. If I can help in any way, please let me know.

This should only go towards court. As much as I sympathise that Riley is in dire straits, he must pay for what he has done. It is something not done gladly but it must be done. This cannot happen again.

But the efforts of the Board in the wake of this tragedy has been nothing short of astounding. The quickness of your actions and the responsibility you've taken on has been exemplary. If I someday exhibit the same characterisitics you've shown on this day I would be proud of myself. You guys are what Tower members should aspire to be. And the personal examples of Mother bringing the account to balance and Caerwyn Gaidin helping out with Fall Ball are inspiring.

I may not be in the Tower, but I'll repeat the call.

Tai'shar Tar Valon

 

[Myralin al'Ser]

To repeat what others have said, I totally agree with the ban but I really hope we'll be able to get a statement from Riley. I want to hear his side.

I anxiously await more news.

EDIT:

I am so proud of how we are handling this as a group. Scroll down to the bottom of the page. Most members ever online at once was 98, and that was today. We are sticking together. I know we can make it through this. Stay strong, everyone.

 

[Jas'yn Al'Dragoran]

This is very unfortunate. I might mention it can be arranged that 2 signitures are required for any cheque or withdraw. Anyone in a bad situation can be tempted and it is a good precaution tho perhaps inconvenient given people are geographically spread out. Im sure you will all see a way through this.

 

[Meirah Zaïde]

The problem with needing two signatures on a check is that not everyone lives in the same place, you know. We're an online org with execs and board members spread across the U.S. and the globe.