Beverly Church resigned as Marshall Alderman –

In the Friday, Dec 18, 2014 issue of the Marshall Advocate, Gary Strohm (no stranger to Edgar County Watchdogs) wrote a front page hit piece on the Church resignation. I was forewarned that he was going to attack me and several of my fellow aldermen warned me not to talk to him at all. What ever I said would get perverted into something else. I am aware that he attempted to get other aldermen interviews and left a message on the phone of one. The attorney who did the legal work on the Quo Warranto also advised me not to say anything and agreed that not talking to him was a good decision. If Gary wanted a proper legal opinion, he could have called him.
I decided to let the Edgar County Watchdogs speak for me because Gary Strohm will not allow me to speak for myself. He will not allow me to put any letters to the editor in his newspaper nor place any ads even though he allowed Mike Church, Bev Church’s husband, was allowed to put a particular nasty ad attacking me in his newspaper.
I do hope as promised that the Watchdogs will put all the additional details (there’s a lot more) including parts of the investigation report done by an outside agency in an article on this website. Bev Church resigned because she was clearly in violation of the law.
As far as the newspaper article comments go:
1. The reason for the lawsuit was violation of the law which Mayor Camie Sanders refused to uphold.
2. I was extensively attacked in the Advocate and by Mike Church and others during council meetings long before I signed on as a party to the suit to testify in court if need be. I was, in fact, attacked for giving the document to the Edgar County Watchdogs. Nobody seems to remember that Mike Church wrote numerous letters to the editor in the Advocate attacking me for helping citizens express their political positions on community values (he even accused me of writing their letters) and on my voting and positions on other wrongdoing and long before anyone knew about what the Churches were doing wrong. That’s pretty unusual, too.
3. Because of the standings ruling of many years ago (which is why I legally signed on to the suit) ordinary citizens of Ward 2 could not legally have gotten her out of office. Because of the public bullying that went on, local citizens were exceptionally reluctant to get involved. In fact, Tony Malone, a candidate for her seat, did not seek a petition until after he found out Bev Church was going to resign. The reason for the suit was that Bev Church told people that she was going to run again and with the bullying that was going on, chances were better than excellent that despite being not legal, she would have gotten back in and no person except another alderman or Mayor had the standing to remove her. Mayor Sanders knew that. In fact, he attended the court proceedings on the standings matter.
4. For references on not voting the way I do and how I treat aldermen who don’t always vote the way I do, consult Alderman Cathy Macke, Alderman Jim McKittrick, and Alderman Cheryl Raisner.
5. How late in a term when something illegal goes on do you not remedy an illegal situation? Mayor Sanders does NOT give a tipping point. Alderman Vickie Wallace (who has previously voted to excuse wrongdoing by giving retroactive acceptance) does not tell where the point of allowing illegality is, either.
6. The Judge didn’t say the Quo Warranto was a frivolous lawsuit. All motions to dismiss failed.
7. By the way, my votes on supporting city employees during the Sanders administration is exactly the same as Bev Church with the exception of the retroactive pay raises matter and the very improperly worded bullying policy. You let me reword the bullying policy and I will vote for it. I had to abstain appointment votes because I was told at the time of the vote by the Mayor that I was being investigated for lawsuits by parties whose names I was not allowed to know. Had I known who the individuals were, I would have voted for the rest. No lawsuit happened.

Beverly Church resigned as Marshall Alderman – http://t.co/YSaCwwDmSG