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t Reporter
June 15, 2011
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Opinion
Declare among the nations,
and publish, and set up a standard;
publish, and conceal not;
Jeremiah 50:2
On the Porch
County’s closed doors raise suspicions
Miller to get her thoughts
M onroe
County
commis
sioners shut
the public
out of their meeting last
Tuesday, but they’re
not exactly sure how
to justify it.
Commissioners
wrapped up a fairly
routine meeting on
June 7 and then,
skipping their usual
custom of asking
for public comment,
immediately voted
to kick out those in
attendance and close the
meeting.
Can a governing body dis
cuss the people’s business,
our taxes, our laws and our
policies, behind closed doors?
Why yes they can, under
some very specific, and
much-misunderstood, excep
tions written into Georgia’s
open meetings law.
Anyway, so the last two of
us who endured the whole
90-minute meeting (local
builder John Ricketson and
I) were shuffled off into the
lobby to wait and see if com
missioners re-opened it any
time soon.
John and I were chatting
in the lobby when I heard
the baritone twang of chair
man James Vaughn through
the closed doors. We could
hear him talking about sur
veyor Terry Scarborough,
about Bibb County’s argu
ments in the county
line hearing, and
obviously discussing
the county line dis
pute. We wondered
why such discus
sions needed to be
held in secret.
As John and I
discussed this,
commissioner
Larry Evans
opened the doors and poked
his head out at us with his
familiar scowl.
“Are y’all done?” I asked
hopefully.
There was only stony
silence. The other commis
sioners peered at us from
their seats and had muffled
discussion.
Like a turtle unhappy with
the weather, Evans just
shrunk back into the shell of
the meeting room and shut
the door.
Ricketson and I chuckled
at the interruption.
A few second later, the
doors opened again, and
things got a little weirder.
This time county attorney
Mike Dillon marched out
into the lobby in his black,
pin-striped suit, gazing
intently at me from behind
his designer glasses. He
shut the door behind him.
Then he started pacing the
floor, as if he was getting
ready to cross-examine me.
As the kids say these days,
“awww-kward!”
Discomfited by the stand
off, and having rarely ever
pried a word out of Dillon, I
decided to seize the oppor
tunity.
“Mr. Dilllon,” I said, “I
couldn’t help but hearing
them talking about the
county line issue. I don’t
think that issue falls under
an exemption to the open
meetings law.”
I shared that the only time
a government can close a
meeting to the public under
the guise of “litigation” is if
there is an actual lawsuit
or an imminent threat of
a lawsuit from the other
party. Bibb County has
not filed a lawsuit against
Monroe County over the
county line, and to my
knowledge has not threat
ened one in writing.
Mr. Dillon stared, and
listened, and stared some
more. Finally, his lips
moved.
“I. don’t, know. what.
you’re, talking, about.” he
said.
‘You’re an attorney and
you don’t know what I’m
talking about?” I asked.
I further explained
Georgia’s open meetings law
and the exemptions that
allow governments - in a
few instances - to shut out
the public. Those exceptions
are for litigation, real estate
acquisition or to discuss an
individual’s job performance.
Dillon replied that he
understood the law but
didn’t know what I was talk
ing about.
I tried again, explaining
that the exception that lets
the government close a
meeting to discuss litigation
was only meant to allow offi
cials to discuss an existing
or imminent lawsuit with
their attorney.
“And you,” I concluded,
“are standing out here, so
that would be difficult for
them to do.”
With that, he whisked
back into the room.
Ricketson and I just looked
at each other, shrugged, and
laughed at the strange visit
from the county attorney.
We both felt commission
ers had unlawfully closed
the meeting. The next day I
called commissioner Patsy
on it.
But Miller said she too felt
that commissioners had the
right to close the meeting,
however she gave a different
reason. She said the county
line discussion could be held
secretly because it was - get
this - land acquisition.
Um, Mrs. Miller, I
responded, that exception
lets y’all close a meeting to
negotiate to buy property.
Monroe County, I said, is
not going to buy any land
from Bibb County - this
issue is merely for the state
to set a political boundary.
She was adamant, though,
insisting it was property
acquisition. I’m sure the
folks in Providence Place
subdivision will be surprised
to learn that Monroe County
is buying their property.
So next I tried chairman
James Vaughn. He’s a law
yer. Maybe he can straight
en me out.
Asked if the discussions
violated the open meet
ings act, Vaughn said no,
the county line issue can
be discussed behind closed
doors because it’s litigation
since lawyers were involved.
I reminded Vaughn that
he himself has often said
the state has no subpoena
power in the border dispute
because this is not a court
case. Nevermind, he said,
it’s litigation.
So then I asked about
claims that the doors were
closed because the county
line issue falls under the
“property acquisition”
exemption.
‘Will, there you go again,”
said Vaughn, “you have a
habit of assuming things
you don’t know. That was a
separate issue, to talk about
buying land on Edge Road.”
“No,” I replied, “commis
sioner Patsy Miller, not me,
is the one who claimed it
was real estate acquisition.”
Vaughn was the one doing
the assuming.
Anyway, the Reporter has
registered our complaint
and now we’ve passed it on
to you, dear reader. From
what I heard through the
door cracks on Tuesday,
commissioners didn’t discuss
anything about the county
line issue that we haven’t
reported on in this newspa
per. So here’s the question:
What are they trying to
hide, and why did they shut
out the public they repre
sent?
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Law requires commissioners to keep meetings open
To the editor:
n Tuesday, June 7,1 attended
the regularly scheduled meet
ing of the Monroe County
commissioners. After the
usual proclamations,
variance approvals, and janito
rial bids, commissioners went
into executive session. We were
first told that the reason for this
“closed session” was to discuss
litigation. I am not aware of any
“notice of impending lawsuit”
or any recently-filed lawsuit
against Monroe County. But
that does not matter because
discussing impending litigation
is not one of the nine exemptions to
the Georgia Open Meetings Act (O.C.G.A
50-14-3). Georgia Code § 50-14-1 requires
that the meetings of the governing bodies
of state or local agencies be open to the
public unless there is a specific statutory
exemption.
Later, we were informed that the meet
ing was closed for “discussing the future
acquisition of real estate”, which is an
allowed exemption. I have good reason to
believe that the closed session related to
the Bibb-Monroe County Line issue, which
has nothing to do with the stated purpose
of the exemption, which is the
discussion for the negotiation of a
property purchase by the county.
Discussing the annexing of private
property and the political subdivi
sions of the State of Georgia are
not valid reasons for an exemption.
Discussing the earlier public hear
ings and the Secretary of State’s
public hearing also does not qualify
for an exemption.
While I was standing outside
the conference room (in the lobby
area), Larry Evans burst through
the door like he was playing linebacker
for Dan Pitts. Even though I was 15 or 20
feet away, it startled me and almost made
me jump out of my skin. Satisfied that I
was nowhere near the door, Larry went
back in the conference room. A couple
of minutes later, 007 (a/k/a Mike Dillon)
was dispatched to go into the lobby to spy
on me and Will Davis and to ascertain if
we could hear anything being said in the
closed session. For the record, we could not
hear anything because of the closed doors
and the noise of the Coke machine run
ning, but we did hear Terry Scarborough’s
name mentioned once, so it was easy
to determine the actual purpose for the
closed session.
Will Davis asked Mike Dillon about the
legality of the “closed session”. His ques
tion was clear to me, but to Mike’s credit
as a lawyer, he did the best job of “play
ing dumb” that I’ve ever been privileged
to witness. From the look on his face, it
was very apparent that Mike Dillon would
have rather been made to eat a cockroach
than have to stand outside that conference
room door, but he was probably just doing
as he was told.
In any event, it is my opinion that the
closed session by the Monroe County
Commissioners was illegal. While I under
stand their desire to have the meeting in
private, they do not make the laws in the
State of Georgia and need to be aware that
they are obliged to follow the same laws as
any other citizen. Here is what the Open
Meetings Act says about noncompliance:
“Anyone who “knowingly and willfully”
conducts or participates in a meeting with
out complying with every part of the Act is
guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a
$500 fine. O.C.G.A. § 50-14-6.”
The Georgia Open Meetings Act give “the
public” the right to attend the meetings of
governing bodies of agencies, with excep
tions for closed meetings as provided by
law. Georgia law does not limit access to
meetings to a specific category of people
or a profession, such as “the traditional
press.” Anyone may attend.
I have no intention of filing a complaint
against the commissioners. However, I
would ask that they do not play fast and
loose with the law that grants specific
rights to the general public and every ordi
nary citizen.
John F. Ricketson III
Monroe County
RICKETSON
is published every week by
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Will Davis, president
Robert M. Williams Jr., vice president
Cheryl S. Williams, secretary-tre asurer
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Queen: Saddened by Davis* troubles
To the editor:
I t saddens me to see a competent elected offi
cial leave office under extreme circumstances.
In my dealings with Judge Davis he has been
very knowledgeable, helpful and professional.
I can only pray that he takes the consequenc
es rendered by a fellow judge and uses this oppor
tunity to seek help for his alcohol abuse and hope
fully someday regain the level of trust the people of
Monroe County must have in their elected officials.
Bud Queen
Forsyth
Chief magistrate
judge Jeff Da
vis talks to the
media on Friday
after pleading
guilty to DUI.
Alumni game helped families in need
To the editor:
n Saturday, May 28 the MPHS Soccer
Alumni Game was held at Billy Lancaster
Field. Many former and current players
showed up for the annual event. I had the
honor of organizing the silent auction put on
by the soccer booster club. This year’s auction was dedi
cated to two special families, the Seitz and Buchanan
families. Kylie Seitz had surgery on May 26 at Egleston
to remove scar tissue from her hip. Kylie along with her
mom and dad came to the auction after being dismissed
from Egleston that day.
The auction was also in memory of Greg Buchanan
who had passed earlier in the week. Both families have
players in our MP Soccer program. I am thrilled to
report that we raised $2,370 to provide assistance for
these families. Thank you to the following businesses/
community members for your support: John Laurence,
Gini Seitz, The Reporter, Lucky Cafe, Dairy Queen,
Mark & Lauri English, JDS Tennis Center, Don and
Pam Leonard, Terry and Sally Proffitt, The Prime
Palate, Bob Buckley, Mitchum’s Liquidation, Jackson
and Theresa Daniel, Katie Daniel, Trophy Ford, Smart
Shoppes on the Square, Wiley and Diane Crosby, Joey’s
Pit Stop, Visual Glamour, Jumpin’ Joey’s, West Mane
Salon, Wild Wings, The Honeycomb, Flowers by Helen,
Georgia Athletic Club, Coliseum Hospital Gift Shop,
Jonah’s Pizza, Grits Cafe, Forsyth Feed & Seed, Advance
Auto Parts, Barbara Ham, Don & Kathy Carter, Dodd’s
Builder Supply, Warthen Hall, and Studio 55.
Marcy Sanders
Forsyth