PENDER COUNTY — A clerk of court in the southeastern region will maintain her position, Superior Court Judge Kent Harrell determined Friday.
Elizabeth Craver was indicted on multiple counts of felony obtaining property by false pretenses and failure to discharge her duties. While she still faces criminal charges from the SBI, her removal hearing was ruled on this week.
The hearing started Wednesday, with witnesses testifying about Craver’s questionable conduct while she served as the county’s clerk of court (read WHQR’s report, also republished by Port City Daily, here).
The clerk was accused of using government money for the purchase of personal items, taking county property home for personal use, altering employee timesheets, authorizing they campaign for her while at work, and failing to correct an error on owelty.
Craver was appointed in 2017 to replace retired clerk of court Robert Kilroy, re-elected in 2019 and won the 2022 Republican primary this year. She was indicted in February following the SBI investigation. Harrell suspended Craver from office the same month.
While the judge agreed some of Craver’s behavior was improper, he determined much of it wasn’t extreme enough to warrant her removal. Some actions also weren’t found to be willful, rather an error in judgment.
“It is not uncommon for clerks of court or any other judge to make decisions that are later called into question,” Harrell said in the courtroom Friday, according to StarNews.
Craver will resume her duties as a Pender County employee immediately.
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