Hanceville Mayor Katie Whitley is apologizing for violating bid laws and says she did not intentionally break the law.

Meanwhile, Hanceville Police Chief Philip Bray said Thursday that he contacted the Attorney General’s Office and spoke with them.

“They said under the circumstances, there is no criminality involved because there was no criminal intent to defraud or circumvent the sealed bid system,” said Bray. “City members were acting in good faith. If it would have been a case where there was some sort of deliberate attempt to circumvent the bid system, there could have been criminal charges brought. The Attorney General’s Office declined to take any further action.”

The mayor said that the last administration bought four Crown Victorias in 2004.

“All these came in as we were sworn in, and we had to pay for them,” Whitley said. The mayor attended every City Council meeting for two years prior to taking office and said “there was never a sealed bid process.”

The mayor’s full apology will be published in Sunday’s paper. In it, she says, “The bid submitted by Eckenrod Ford was less than the amount for a similarly equipped vehicle off of the state bid list. At the time the City of Hanceville believed that purchases which were equal to or less than the ‘State Bid List’ price could be bought outright without the competitive bid process which is normally utilized for major purchases by the city government.”

On Thursday, The Cullman Times ran an article clarifying state bid laws. State authorities said the city of Hanceville and the mayor violated state bid laws when they purchased two police cars from a local car dealership. For purchases over $7,500, goods and services must be bid in a sealed bid process or bought from the entity that won the state contract. Adamson Ford in Birmingham won the contract for Crown Victorias.

“I apologize for this error and pledge that all additional purchases of vehicles for the use of the City of Hanceville will be conducted in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations.”