SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) - Even at age 81, Dr. James C. Metts Jr. liked to stay busy. By day, he treated some of Savannah's poorest patients at a downtown medical clinic. By night, or whenever police called, he examined dead bodies as the Chatham County coroner — an elected job that gave Metts a taste of the spotlight in the bestselling book "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil."
Metts surprised nobody last fall when he cruised to re-election without opposition, just as he had done since he took office 40 years ago. Barely a month later, the man affectionately known as Dr. Jimmy shocked everyone when he abruptly resigned.
Metts cited only his advancing age and personal reasons for his exit, but it was later revealed that the Georgia Bureau of Investigation was called in after county auditors questioned at least $141,000 in payments for a secretary Metts didn't have and what appeared to be personal expenses for property taxes, auto insurance and cellphone bills. The GBI's findings will go to local prosecutors, who will decide if Metts should face criminal charges.
"We were flabbergasted," said Dr. Julia Mikell, a Savannah neurologist who has known Metts for 32 years. "It's just a lot of money and I was surprised that would be something he would do... He's very close to the police. That's why it's all so stunning."
Cathy Sapp, the GBI agent in charge of the investigation, declined to comment on specifics other than saying allegations against Metts involved "financial issues." As of Friday, the former coroner had been charged with no crimes.
Metts returned a phone call but said he did not want to comment. His attorney, Tom Withers, also declined to discuss the case.
"I don't believe he would've done anything intentionally criminal," said Chuck Powell, a business associate who worked with Metts for 36 years on an initiative to reduce strokes and heart attacks in the Savannah area. "For those of us who know him intimately, none of it adds up."
The son of a local physician, Metts followed his father into medicine but in mid-career eschewed the lucrative pursuit of a private practice and spent the last 20 years working at the Curtis V. Cooper Primary Health Care Clinic, which treats poor and uninsured patients. From 1969 until last year, the doctor led a local initiative that targeted cardiovascular disease by offering blood pressure screenings and other preventative treatments to the poor.
It wasn't clear how much he was paid to work for the clinic, but he had an annual salary of about $54,500 as coroner. The coroner's office had a budget of just over $317,000 last year.
Powell and others credit Metts with slashing the rate of strokes and heart attacks in Chatham County. In 2010, the Georgia Legislature honored Metts with a resolution praising his "unselfish and dedicated public service."
