Part 1: The Whistleblower
Michelle Hung Tried to Stop David Moore’s ERA Scam. Nobody Listened.
May 01, 2025
By Aaron Knapp | Lorain Politics Unplugged
⚖️ Legal Disclaimer
The following investigative article is based entirely on verified public records and sworn deposition testimony taken under oath from former Lorain County Commissioner Michelle Hung. Quotations are taken directly from deposition transcripts, letters filed with the Ohio Ethics Commission, and associated government documents obtained through legal and public means. All allegations discussed herein are documented and form part of the official record in ongoing public interest investigations.
The Ethics Complaint That Should Have Stopped It All
On October 11, 2022, Commissioner Michelle Hung filed an official complaint with the Ohio Ethics Commission alleging that fellow Lorain County Commissioner David J. Moore had improperly applied for and received Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) funds from a federal program he voted to establish. The letter, addressed to Paul Nick, Executive Director of the Ethics Commission, laid out in precise terms that Moore voted to accept over $9.2 million in federal stimulus money and then personally profited from that same fund. Attached were Moore’s ERA applications, rental records, county resolutions, and check disbursements totaling over $15,000. Hung described the arrangement as a possible criminal violation of Ohio ethics laws and forwarded copies to the Lorain County Auditor and Prosecutor.
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Moore’s ERA application was submitted on July 28, 2022. It listed a tenant named Melana Adkins and a landlord address that led back to AJS Wealth Management LLC—a real estate company registered to Moore. He requested rental payments for August, September, October 2022, and January 2023. Hung later confirmed through fiscal records that Moore received $15,032.66 in ERA payments from this application and earlier ones, covering several months of rental assistance. She also confirmed that Moore failed to recuse himself from any vote or discussion tied to the ERA program, despite actively participating in both the program’s creation and budget implementation.
The timeline is clear. Moore voted on January 27, 2021, to accept the ERA stimulus funds into Lorain County. By March 31, 2021, he was applying for money from that very fund. He continued voting on relevant resolutions throughout 2021 and 2022, even while his own applications were pending. Hung flagged this in her complaint as a textbook case of self-dealing in violation of Ohio Revised Code § 2921.42, which bars public officials from having an interest in public contracts. She quoted directly from the Ethics Commission’s own guidance: public officials are prohibited from “directing or influencing government processes to benefit their private interests.”
Hung’s complaint was not speculative. She submitted source documentation, including a copy of the ERA application listing Moore as landlord, payment ledgers from the county showing the money disbursed, and budget records proving Moore’s voting record in favor of ERA funding. She even flagged the specific resolutions where Moore voted to appropriate funds that would later flow to him. Her submission also included public records from the Ohio Secretary of State’s office confirming Moore’s active control of the LLC that received the money. There was nothing theoretical about it. The checks were real, the LLC was real, and the votes were recorded.
“The finding from the Ethics Commission states, ‘prohibiting those in public service from directing or influencing government processes to benefit their private interests.’” — Michelle Hung, Ethics Complaint, Oct. 11, 2022
The Auditor Raised It. The Prosecutor Ignored It.
The Lorain County Auditor’s Office confirmed receipt of Hung’s complaint on the same day it was filed. Auditor Craig Snodgrass personally reviewed the materials and told Hung that he believed Moore’s conduct may rise to a criminal level. Hung’s December 2022 follow-up stated that Snodgrass spoke with auditors across the state and immediately contacted Prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson to inform him of the issue. Tomlinson reviewed the documents and acknowledged receipt. What he did not do—then or since—was open an investigation, refer the matter for prosecution, or notify the public of what had been uncovered.
The ERA scandal did not stop with Moore’s own application. Hung also uncovered internal emails showing Moore pressured staff to prioritize the application of one of his close associates, Duane Bremke. A county employee wrote in a verified message that “David Moore held a meeting and requested that a friend of his who owns a lot of properties be helped.” ERA records show that Bremke and his associated LLCs also received stimulus funds from the same program. Hung included this in her complaint as further evidence of Moore’s abuse of position to benefit those in his real estate network.
After the complaint was filed, Moore’s behavior changed dramatically. According to internal ERA staff logs, Moore—who had been in regular contact with ERA caseworkers for 18 months—suddenly went silent. Between March 2021 and October 2022, Moore had been persistently following up on payments and pressuring staff to expedite them. On October 20, just days after the Ethics Commission complaint and Snodgrass’s call to the Prosecutor, Moore ceased all communication with program staff. He withdrew completely from the ERA process. The caseworker handling his account reported the sudden silence and noted it as unusual.
Then, without any public explanation, Moore divested from the property in question. On December 7, 2022—less than eight weeks after the complaint—he notified ERA staff that he no longer owned the property and that the landlord listed in the application would be changing. This move came after collecting over $15,000 in public funds. The timing aligned exactly with the ethics probe Hung initiated and the timeline she submitted to state authorities. She wrote in her third follow-up letter: “Commissioner Moore suddenly does not communicate with LCDJFS staff. This is a dramatic change of position. It is clearly tied to scrutiny from the Ethics Commission.”
“He pursued ERA funds aggressively for 18 months. Then the ethics complaint was filed—and he went completely silent.” — Michelle Hung, Dec. 2022 Timeline
They Had the Witnesses. No One Asked the Questions.
In her closing remarks to the Ethics Commission, Hung urged investigators to speak with key witnesses: Barb Tamas, Director of Lorain County Jobs and Family Services; Diane Sunagel, ERA Program Administrator; and Jennifer Key, Fiscal Supervisor. These three individuals had firsthand knowledge of Moore’s involvement, his communications with staff, and the processing of payments. Hung wrote that their testimony would confirm not only the factual timeline, but also the pressure Moore applied inside the system. To date, there is no public indication that any of those witnesses were ever contacted.
What makes Hung’s complaint so damning is not just the content—but the fact that it was filed long before the public knew anything. It predates any public scandal. It documents who was notified and when. It shows that not only did Moore receive taxpayer money—he altered his conduct as soon as he knew someone was watching. That kind of reactive silence is not how innocent public officials behave. It is how a man under scrutiny tries to vanish from the paper trail before someone follows it to his front door.
Despite the clear evidence, Moore remains in office. There has been no criminal referral, no disciplinary hearing, no public statement from the Prosecutor’s Office, and no findings issued by the Ethics Commission. Hung has received no formal follow-up. Meanwhile, her political isolation has only grown. Those who should have backed her—Auditor Snodgrass, Prosecutor Tomlinson, Commissioners Moore and Riddell—either fell silent or turned away. But the documents never did.
Let’s be clear: if any other citizen had taken $15,000 in federal money from a program they helped authorize and then lied about it, they’d already be under indictment. Moore wasn’t just protected—he was enabled. Enabled by silence. Enabled by fear. Enabled by the same political machine that now calls Hung a disgruntled former commissioner while pretending her sworn warnings don’t exist. The truth is this: David Moore monetized public office, and when the alarm was sounded, Lorain’s leadership hit snooze.
The ethics complaint is on file. The votes are in the minutes. The payments are in the ledger. And the silence from those who knew—Prosecutor Tomlinson included—is louder than ever.
Author’s Opinion: This Was Theft in a Suit and Tie
By Aaron Knapp
I’ve read every line of Michelle Hung’s complaint, every check stub, every vote, every email. I’ve spoken at public meetings about it. I’ve watched in real time as a commissioner tried to sound the alarm, only to be silenced by the very institutions that should have backed her. This wasn’t a policy disagreement. This wasn’t a gray area. This was theft—polished up in a suit and tie, protected by silence, and dismissed like it never happened.
If a citizen had filed fake paperwork to get $15,000 in pandemic funds, the county would have referred it for prosecution before the ink dried. But David Moore filled out an application, took public money, and voted on the same pot he drank from—and nobody in power cared. The ethics rules weren’t vague. They were ignored. And the moment someone with spine—Hung—tried to expose it, she was iced out and left to rot.
Ask yourself why a commissioner would stop calling caseworkers the moment the Prosecutor learned about the complaint. Ask why he sold his property two months later. Ask why JD Tomlinson never opened a case. The answers aren’t complicated. They’re just uncomfortable. This county protects insiders, not taxpayers. It enforces loyalty, not law. And every day Moore stays in office is another day this government tells you none of it matters.
It matters to me. And if you’re reading this, I hope it matters to you too.
Next: In Part 2, we dive into the sworn deposition of Michelle Hung. Under oath, she names names, details cover-ups, and explains exactly how the settlement cover story was engineered to keep the public in the dark. If you thought the ERA checks were bad, wait until you see who authorized the payout—and who lied about it.
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