最新杏吧原创

The issue: Does the council need its own lawyer, and can the office of county counselor represent two separate branches of government?

The county鈥檚 charter appears to be clear on that point. 鈥淣either the council nor any department 鈥� shall have any attorney other than the county counselor,鈥� it says. But council members point out the county counselor serves at the pleasure of the county executive, which may influence the legal advice that office provides and limit its independence.

As chairman of the 最新杏吧原创 County Council, Democrat Sam Page led the opposition to Stenger and pushed for charter amendments that would have given the seven-member body its own lawyer. Now that he鈥檚 county executive, Page says voters settled the matter with an April 2019 charter amendment carving out a dedicated lawyer in the county counselor鈥檚 office.

But some current council members say that change didn鈥檛 go far enough because their dedicated lawyer still works in the county counselor鈥檚 office.

Ernie Trakas, R-6th District, a veteran of the Stenger battles and often a Page ally, said that legislative branches, to the Missouri Capitol to the 最新杏吧原创 Board of Aldermen, have their own independent legal staffs. He鈥檚 open to a similar setup for the county if it鈥檚 properly crafted.

鈥淚鈥檓 still a proponent of the idea that the council needs its own lawyer or lawyers,鈥� Trakas said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to argue against that. Because occasionally, and in 最新杏吧原创 County鈥檚 case, more than occasionally, the executive branch and the legislative branch don鈥檛 line up together.鈥�

What Page said in 2018

Stenger, indicted on corruption charges in 2019 and later sentenced to nearly four years in prison, spent much of 2017 and 2018 in a bitter feud with the council over that branch鈥檚 powers. When the council tried to hire lawyers in the fight, the Stenger administration maneuvered to block legal payments that flowed through the county counselor鈥檚 office, forcing the council to find attorneys who would initially take their case pro bono.

Page said then that they didn鈥檛 trust the opinions from a county counselor who was supposed to represent them but could be fired by the county executive.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think anyone believes a legislative branch of government shouldn鈥檛 have legal counsel that鈥檚 giving it advice that represents a duty to its clients instead of a duty to someone who鈥檚 adversarial to its client,鈥� Page told the Post-Dispatch in 2018. 鈥淥ur county attorney has gone to court against the County Council 鈥� because he鈥檚 been ordered to do so by the county executive.鈥�

A ballot initiative Page and his allies pushed giving the council its own staff attorney failed by the narrowest of margins in August 2018 鈥� less than 100 votes out of some 250,000 cast. Another ballot issue passed a few months later, though it didn鈥檛 put a lawyer on the council staff.

Page, now head of the executive branch, said he believes the 2019 ballot issue carving out a dedicated lawyer in the county counselor鈥檚 office solved the problem.

鈥淚 thought the County Council needed their own attorney,鈥� Page told the Post-Dispatch in an interview Thursday. 鈥淲e passed a charter amendment to give them their own attorney. I believe it鈥檚 working.鈥�

He acknowledged that Stenger鈥檚 maneuvers with the county counselor鈥檚 office created 鈥渁 unique setting,鈥� but said that 鈥渋n the end, the courts worked.鈥�

Page pointed out that the attorney assigned to the County Council is a merit employee who can鈥檛 be fired for political reasons. That lawyer, Genevieve Frank, has a 鈥渄uty鈥� to the council under the April 2019 change, Page said.

A vote of no confidence

Despite that, a deep rift between the council and the county鈥檚 top lawyer has opened once again, with the council voting last week 4-3 to approve a resolution expressing its lack of confidence in the current county counselor, Beth Orwick.

The unusual action followed a tangled two-month fight over leadership that started on Jan. 5 when Council members Lisa Clancy, D-5th District, and Trakas, both Page allies, were elected chair and vice chair with the votes of Council members Kelli Dunaway, D-2nd District, and Rochelle Walton Gray, D-4th District. Gray, however, had been defeated in the Aug. 4 Democratic primary by challenger Shalonda Webb, and her term should have ended on Jan. 1. But a charter change, approved by voters in August, changed the start date for county officeholders, which meant Webb鈥檚 term couldn鈥檛 begin until Jan. 12. Citing Orwick鈥檚 legal advice, Clancy and her allies said Gray was entitled to continue representing her north 最新杏吧原创 County district until Webb was sworn in.

As soon as Webb joined the council, she joined with Page opponents Rita Heard Days, D-1st District, Mark Harder, R-7th District, and Tim Fitch, R-3rd District, to replace Clancy and Trakas with Days and Harder. Orwick then filed a lawsuit against the council majority on behalf of 最新杏吧原创 County, seeking to overturn the majority鈥檚 vote. On March 2, 最新杏吧原创 County Circuit Judge Thomas Albus ruled against the county, saying Gray鈥檚 participation in the Jan. 5 vote was illegal.

Citing Orwick鈥檚 role in the leadership dispute, Council Chairwoman Days said Wednesday, 鈥淚t is going to be difficult for us to even have faith in that office. We may have to look at putting (a council attorney) back on the ballot at some point.鈥�

Page, however, said Thursday the leadership dispute was a 鈥渞are event鈥� and was handled appropriately. The new council majority was able to hire outside counsel, Page said, and won in court. He said he is ready to move on.

鈥淩elitigating this settled question of separate legal counsel for the County Council, it just maintains divisiveness and confrontation,鈥� Page said.

Far from settled

Fitch, who sponsored the no-confidence resolution, said the matter is far from settled, calling the 2019 charter provision 鈥渁 joke鈥� that 鈥渄id absolutely nothing.鈥�

鈥淭hey try to make like there鈥檚 a wall between them,鈥� Fitch said. 鈥淎 wall doesn鈥檛 exist when you report to someone in the executive branch.鈥�

鈥淭urn on the County Council meeting, who鈥檚 the county counselor there in our meeting?鈥� he continued. 鈥淏eth Orwick is there. And when there鈥檚 a question about anything legally it goes to Beth Orwick. She shouldn鈥檛 even be in our meetings.鈥�

Fitch initially was against the council having its own lawyer. He can still 鈥渁rgue both sides,鈥� he said, but 鈥渁t the end of the day, I think the legislative branch needs its own attorney.鈥�

Even Trakas, who said the April 2019 change improved efficiency for the council, said the change wasn鈥檛 enough for true legislative independence.

鈥淚f we鈥檙e going to have our own attorney, we need our own attorney,鈥� Trakas said. 鈥淩egardless of who they assign, they still work for the county counselor. The appearance of a conflict anyway is always present. Doesn鈥檛 mean there is one, doesn鈥檛 mean we鈥檙e not getting good advice. All I鈥檓 saying is, from appearances, it is challenging.鈥�

Tim O鈥機onnell, who served as the 最新杏吧原创 Board of Aldermen鈥檚 attorney and later worked as Mayor Lyda Krewson鈥檚 chief of staff, said any disputes between local government branches that head to court can probably be resolved with the hiring of outside counsel.

鈥淔or a local government, having a lawyer on staff at all times that鈥檚 dedicated to the so-called legislative branch could lead to more conflict,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he question a lawyer serving a local governing body should be asking elected officials is: Is this really a legal question, or is this a political and policymaking question that you all should be negotiating?鈥�

The County Council could end up hiring outside lawyers again. Fitch is still waiting on a legal opinion from the county counselor鈥檚 office about whether a vote the council took during Gray鈥檚 last meeting in January authorizing the county to enter into legal contracts is valid in light of the leadership dispute ruling.

鈥淲e had plenty of attorneys helping us on the chair and vice chair situation,鈥� Fitch said. 鈥淪o we might be able to do just that.鈥�