Lawyers hired by FCPS to probe school finances want to interview budget director

A law firm hired by Fayette County Public Schools to investigate the district’s finances wants to interview budget director Ann Sampson-Grimes, according to her lawyer.

The St. Louis law firm, Tueth Keeney, is investigating the district’s budget practices and contingency, or rainy day, fund, which was revealed last year to be significantly smaller than expected.

Brandon Voelker, the lawyer for Ann Sampson-Grimes, said the law firm asked to speak to his client as part of its investigation into whether any misconduct by FCPS employees led to financial issues in the district.

The request comes after Sampson-Grimes sued the district Sept. 10 claiming Superintendent Demetrus Liggins put her on administrative leave in retaliation for warning of financial problems in the district.

Sampson-Grimes was on leave Aug. 15 to Sept. 25 before returning to her position. She is now working from home on special projects, her lawyer told the Herald-Leader on Tuesday.

The St. Louis law firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday evening.

Late Tuesday night, FCPS spokesperson Miranda Scully responded:

“The investigation initially began as an internal review conducted by district staff. However, to preserve absolute objectivity and eliminate any potential for perceived bias or conflicts of interest—given the professional and supervisory relationships involved—the district made the strategic decision to transition the review to an external, independent entity,” she said.

“The district has engaged a St. Louis-based firm with significant investigative expertise for this work. While the firm is a law firm by structure, they are serving strictly in an independent, investigative capacity for this matter and are not serving as legal counsel for the district.”

Because the matter involves ongoing personnel issues and is currently subject to litigation, “ it would be inappropriate for the district to comment further on the specifics of the investigation at this time. Our priority is to ensure the process remains credible, thorough, and fair to all parties involved,” Scully said.

“This is not a new investigation and did not require school board approval,” she said.

District officials did not immediately say how much the investigation would cost the district.

Voelker told the Herald-Leader he reached back out to the St. Louis attorneys but Sampson-Grimes had already provided the information district officials need.

“The district just keeps hiring more lawyers, investigators, auditors and others versus just examining known facts and policies,” Voelker told the Herald-Leader. “Why would the board need an investigator for them to know if their policy was followed?”

“It is clear it was not, and my client reported same to district leadership. ... Surely the board doesn’t need a lawyer to ask them if they were told something their policy requires,” Voelker said.

The St. Louis firm’s probe is one of several into the district’s financial problems, including one by Kentucky’s state auditor and one by a Texas-based firm, which was hired by the district. A lawyer from Ashland has also been hired by the district to investigate Sampson-Grimes’ claims Liggins retaliated against her.

This story was originally published January 13, 2026 at 5:50 PM.