As a citizen and after sitting through BOC meetings and a Board of Elections meeting, I am most confused and am seeking answers that I think investigative reporters might also be seeking.
At the July 23 BOC meeting, a woman named Irene Cheyne raised some very interesting points regarding Georgia Law when it comes to filling vacant positions. I contacted her and asked her to send me a copy of her written public statement.
Her comments got me thinking and I have some questions of my own that I think we as Fayette citizens have a right to know. Sometimes we accept the answers we are given because no one is willing to do the due diligence to get the answers. As investigative reporters can you help me seek answers to my questions?
1. Was the county attorney’s advice to the Board of Elections and the Board of Commission the law or his interpretation of the law? Was he qualified to give advice on how the special election should be conducted?
2. County Attorney Dennis Davenport advised the Board of Elections about the law. He said they had to follow and that they had no choice other than to follow the law. Is that accurate?
3. County Attorney Dennis Davenport also said that the case is complicated and this was not his area of expertise, so why is he advising the BOC and Board of Elections? Should he not seek a higher authority to interpret the law, say, maybe, a judge?
a. He said at the Board of Elections meeting, “Just a disclaimer here: I am not part of this litigation. I read the orders just like all of you read the orders and I make my conclusions based upon what I read and talk with other folks about that.”
4. Who are the other folks he talked to and why did he not disclose that openly in the board of elections meeting?
5. Where did he get his legal advice to advise both the Board of Elections and the Board of Commission about how to proceed with this special election?
6. Did Dennis Davenport get legal advice from the lawyer hired by the County Commission to appeal the law suit on at-large versus district voting?
7. If Dennis Davenport did get his advice from that law firm, does that not constitute a conflict of interest to the citizens of the county and certainly the citizens of District 5?
8. If the lawyer has been hired to fight for at-large voting is giving advice about what to do in this very special and somewhat complicated special election, could the advice be self-serving? (I can possibly see a lawyer laughing all the way to the bank as she tags on fees for taxpayers)
9. Was Dennis Davenport correct in his assertion that there was no choice but to follow the law?
10. If it is the interpretation of the law, is it not a disservice to the citizens of Fayette County to proceed without a second opinion?
11. The reason the Appeals Court sent the case back to Judge Batten’s court for a bench trial was according to its decision is that it was “procedural in nature.” So why does the county attorney keep saying that the case was “thrown out” or “overturned”? Are these terms accurate?
12. Doing district voting in the special election would be less costly to the county to fill Pota Coston’s unexpired term. Why is the county who says it wants to be fiscally responsible not concerned about the additional expense?
13. According to Georgia law, any discussion to fill an unexpired term of an elected official should be done in an open meeting. Was this adhered to?
14. What open meeting did the Board of Commissioners have to discuss the method to fill the unexpired term of Pota Coston?
15. When and by whom was the decision made to fill the unexpired term of Pota Coston by at-large voting?
16. Who was involved in the decision-making process?
17. Did our Board of Commissioners violate the Open Meetings Act? Did they commit an ethical violation?
18. Did our Board of Commissioners do their due diligence in getting information about how to fill the vacant seat left by Pota Coston?
19. Since the case according to County Attorney is complicated, did the BOC seek a second opinion?
20. Did the BOC ever think to ask the judge for an opinion?
21. Is the current BOC through the death of Pota Coston seizing this opportunity to further push an at-large voting agenda that is currently in litigation?
22. Are our BOC being self-serving or are they looking at what is in the best interest of the county as a whole?
23. If Steve Brown, the only other county commissioner chosen by district voting, was recalled by special election, what method would be used to replace him, at-large or district voting?
Fayette resident of 26 years
Dawn Oparah
Fayetteville, Ga.
