They just can't quit it, can they. God bless our friends on the other side of the aisle up in Allen County for refusing to be deterred by the fact that they had apparently run out of bullets by which to shoot themselves in the foot. Apparently, they've decided to just reload and keep on firing.
Controversy erupted within the Allen County Republican Party, just three weeks ahead of a vote to decide who will be that group's chairman.
Steve Shine will be up for reelection, he has held the position for the past 15 years. Over the weekend, an email circulating between members called for a change in leadership.
Glenna Jehl, a party member, authored the email.
[...]
"Hurry, do not delay, time is of essence since the election is scheduled for the first week of March! This is your chance to make a difference... Remember, all that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing!"
Jehl, if you remember, was the campaign manager for former-candidate, now-criminal Matt Kelty, whose campaign contribution cover-up -- including money given to him by Jehl -- derailed the GOP's hopes of mounting a challenge to Democratic control over the Fort Wayne mayoral office.
Remember the controversy that arose after last year's mayoral election in Terre Haute? Republican Duke Bennett won the contest, but questions arose as to whether his employment in a non-profit that received federal funds violated the Hatch Act.
I lost sight of the legal scuffle that followed, foolishly assuming it had been swept under some rug. As it turns out, the battle was ongoing, and today the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled that the Republican mayor of Terre Haute was not eligible to run last year.
A news conference has been called for 4 p.m. today in the mayor's office in city hall, following an Indiana Court of Appeals ruling this morning in favor of former Terre Haute Mayor Kevin Burke who had challenged Republican Duke Bennett's eligibility in the 2007 election.
The court by a 2-to-1 decision stated that Bennett was ineligible to take office and that Burke is not entitled to fill that post as a result of the ruling, because voters were unaware of Bennett's ineligibility. Thus, the votes cannot be counted and the court ruled the office vacant.
As of 11 a.m., Bennett remained in his office in a closed-door meeting with staff members and was unavailable for comment.
City attorney Chou Il-Lee said today he may ask for a stay of the ruling. He and Bill Lower, board of works and safety president and city legal adviser, said they remain uncertain of who would fill the mayor's vacancy on an interim basis under state law.
The Indiana Law Blog points us to the decision, which outlines what could happen next.
Because Burke has standing to contest the election and Bennett is ineligible, we conclude that a vacancy exists. In light of this conclusion, we direct the parties' attention to Ind. Code §§ 3-10-8, which govern special elections. See Ind. Code § 3-10-8-1 ("A special election shall be held in the following case: . . . . (4) Whenever a vacancy occurs in any local office the filling of which is not otherwise provided by law."). We order the trial court to issue a writ of election pursuant to Ind. Code § 3-10-8-3.
For the foregoing reasons, we reverse the trial court's denial of Burke's petition contesting the election for mayor of Terre Haute, and remand for proceedings consistent with this opinion. Reversed and remanded.
Wow. Assuming nothing changes, and there is a special election, we could be looking at a surprise pick-up of a mayoral office that should have been ours anyway.
Last year, we had a lot of fun with Fort Wayne mayoral candidate Matt Kelty. But the fun gave way to wackiness, and the wackiness gave way to criminal proceedings, and over a year later, word comes from the Fort that the matter is closed.
Former Fort Wayne mayoral candidate Matt Kelty pleaded guilty Monday afternoon to two felony and one misdemeanor charge - admitting to filing bogus campaign documents and lying to the grand jury investigating him.
Kelty was facing a nine-count indictment accusing him of perjury and numerous violations of campaign finance laws. Five of the felony counts and the two misdemeanors dealt with allegations Kelty violated Indiana's campaign finance laws, specifically how he reported $150,000 he received from former campaign chairman Fred Rost, as well as $10,000 from his campaign manager and her husband.
The misdemeanor charge was for false informing, and the two felonies were for filing fraudulent campaign finance reports. Kelty will serve a one-year suspended sentence, pay a nominal fine, and serve 80 hours of community service.
By request, let's take a trip down memory lane and remember all the good times we shared with Matt, including the first YouTube video I ever made. Ah, it seems like only yesterday that Cake-gate was a fresh and exciting addition to the Indiana political lexicon.
Matt Kelty ran a horrible, horrible campaign to be Fort Wayne's leader. A horrible, potentially felonious campaign. And while we've all had more than a little fun at his expense, I'm actually ready for some variety of resolution in this nearly year-old dispute.
That's why I was glad to see this in the Journal Gazette:
Indicted former Republican mayoral candidate Matt Kelty's trial will go on as scheduled in October, despite efforts by his defense attorney to delay the case again.
Kelty's new lawyer, former Allen County Prosecutor Robert Gevers, asked Allen Superior Court Judge Ken Scheibenberger to delay the October trial to allow more time to prepare. Gevers came to the case in July and cited the voluminous amounts of documents he needed to work his way through as he builds a defense.
Kelty and his rotating cast of a legal team have delayed the inevitable for months now, and this was just another nonsensical ploy to buy more time at the taxpayer's expense.
Of course, Kelty's lawyer appears to have compelling evidence that he is unprepared for the trial to take place.
In Gevers' motion requesting the delay, he lists the wrong date as the beginning of the trial, citing Oct. 13, not Oct. 21.
I'm a pretty heartless guy when it comes to politicians breaking the law. Especially when the politicians are crazy right-wing wackos who see their key to electoral victory in ridiculous wedge issues.
But I'm also a human being of sorts, so even I felt some pity for the Kelty clan when I read that their patriarch's legal woes have forced them to sell their home.
Kelty's Florida Drive home is slated for auction June 14 in an effort to help the failed Republican mayoral nominee fight campaign finance and perjury charges.
While he said he has spent some time thinking about the past year, Kelty remains upbeat, saying he plans to make the most of a bad situation and use it as a teaching experience for his children.
[...]
Kelty said the money made from the sale of his home must be used to repay legal fees. He and his family plan to move to a cottage on Sylvan Lake. The cottage was built by Kelty's great-great-grandfather and bought by his family a few years ago, he said.
"This is just for the summer," he said. "Once we get the house sold, we'll begin figuring out what is next."
For an architect to sell his own house is just as much insult as injury, if you ask me. But don't worry, Matt, because you're not alone. Perhaps you and the Allen County GOP can form some sort of support group.
Instead of mentioning this as a footnote, it's probably worth prefacing the whole post by saying that indicted Fort Wayne mayoral candidate Matt Kelty's trial date has been moved again, and now will kick off in mid-October.
Of course, it doesn't really matter if Kelty is charged or not at this point, because the damage that Kelty's ineffective, indicted campaign did to his local GOP operation still has them reeling six months later. This morning's Journal Gazette breaks down the numbers:
An effort to be more forthcoming by its chairman shows just how bad the local Republican Party's financial situation really is.
The Allen County Republican Party filed its preprimary campaign finance report Thursday, which shows the party raised nearly $20,000, but after expenses was left with only $99.05 in the bank. Coupled with $47,680 in debts, the party faces a troubling picture.
But Chairman Steve Shine said that picture is skewed by an effort to better disclose the party's true financial picture - and a later-than-normal Lincoln Day fundraiser. Shine said the party sought a legal opinion from the Indiana Election Commission about whether all outstanding bills need to be reported as debts - not just loans directly to the party.
Less than a hundred bucks and over $47k in debts? To quote Jeff Pruitt over at FWP: "Whatever happened to fiscal responsibility?"
Another month, another typo-filled plea for cash from the indicted Matt Kelty, who took a simple mayoral campaign in Fort Wayne and somehow destroyed not only his personal finances, but the entire GOP infrastructure of that county. Did I mention he could use a few bucks?
The Kelty for Mayor campaign sent an e-mail request to supporters, titled "February/March 2008 Update." In the letter, Kelty tells people he is "deeply disappointed" his criminal case has proceeded so far, and the legal process has been difficult for his family. He said he also understands he must defend himself.
"Friends, many of you have already done a great deal to help me. As difficult as it is to ask you again for help, it is also necessary," Kelty wrote. "We cannot undue (sic) what was done in 2007, but we must stand together moving forward."
Kelty did not return a call Monday seeking comment.
The article notes that Kelty has already raised over $60,000 for his looming legal fight, which has been tied up with pretrial motions thus far. The current start date is in August, but the Kelty camp's stall-tactics may delay that even further.
Yesterday I brought word via Jeff Pruitt's Fort Wayne Politics about the Allen County GOP being forced to sell their downtown office in the aftermath of last year's disastrous municipal elections. As I said yesterday -- this is the house that indicted mayoral candidate Matt Kelty built, and they are going to be feeling the effects for a long, long time.
And speaking of our good buddy Matt, it looks like his legal team is set to file yet another dismissal motion of some variety. This seems to be a monthly routine for them now, so it's not really big news anymore. What is interesting to note is this little tidbit in Rebecca S. Green's Journal Gazette article:
Having had their term extended another six months in December at the request of special prosecutor Daniel Sigler, the grand jury met Wednesday, according to court officials and records.
In August, the same group indicted Kelty on nine criminal counts, including seven felonies, alleging campaign finance violations and perjury in his testimony.
I have always said that Fred Rost and the rest of the gang who were helping Kelty hide this money away should face conspiratorial charges of one sort or another.
Every time the grand jury meets, my heart skips a beat.
Update: Oh, and just because I'm feeling particularly antagonistic this morning, here's a trip down memory lane:
In some ways, I almost feel pity for the Allen County Republicans. They were sold a real lemon in last year's mayoral primary, and the next five months were pure hell. Indictments, birthday cakes, and a few hate-filled radio ads all added up to a big loss for Matt Kelty (and everyone else) at the ballot box, and a fractured party in desperate need of rebuilding.
Speaking of buildings, Jeff Pruitt brings word that the Allen County GOP's is up for sale. The Fort Wayne News-Sentinel offers this:
Its headquarters at 135 W. Main St. - partially owned by Chairman Steve Shine - has been put up for sale because the party is three months behind in its rent. And Shine himself may be in for some changes, thanks to a movement by conservatives to reassert control of a party they believe has veered from its traditional conservative roots.
Marvin Hoot, a former East Allen County Schools board member who supported Matt Kelty for mayor against party favorite Nelson Peters in last year's primary, said efforts to encourage people to seek election as precinct committee representatives is not specifically directed at Shine, the 16-year chairman whose term expires in March 2009. But Hoot said he believes the party is no longer reliably conservative in its approach to social and economic issues.
This is the house that Kelty built -- a dysfunctional, crumbling, condemned house. A real fixer-upper.
Ballard's average-guy persona, and even his sometimes-stammering method of public speaking, is in many ways refreshing in this era of smooth-talking politicians. It goes well with Ballard's back-to-the-basics pledge to focus on everyday issues such as crime and potholes.
That said, the tongue-tied routine doesn't work everywhere. It doesn't work, for instance, in a Statehouse hearing on a property tax bill that could shape the city's future. Indianapolis needs a strong and clear advocate in such an arena, and Ballard came to the hearing either poorly briefed or without a clear appreciation of the stakes at play. He needs to take such events seriously. A poor performance at the Statehouse -- or, say, at a meeting with business leaders or potential employers -- could cost the city dearly.
And even this!
The mayor promised massive cuts in spending. But he's given few details. He was elected more than three months ago and needs to let his constituents know what programs and services could be cut.
I heard Tully on Abdul's show last Thursday, and he was already shopping around his very valid point about the irony of lawmakers badgering a local official three months into a term when they have had years to address the property tax problem on their end.
True.
At the same time, Greg Ballard spent the latter half of last year promising big changes from a military-experienced mover and shaker. Voters were probably expecting more than what they saw on Monday, and the fact that the campaign promises that haven't been completely abandoned are still wallowing in the hypothetical world of rhetorical expression doesn't give the guy much of an excuse for his bad performance.
Here was the promise that Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard ran on last year, which you can still read on his campaign website:
1. I will cut the non-public safety budget (about 700 million dollars) by 10% by the third year in office or I won't run for re-election). That may sound a bit dramatic but I want to drive home this important point. I mean what I say.
At the time, he deflected questions as to how he would cut $70 million from the budget by simply saying that there was plenty of "fluff" in the budget, and once he got into office, there would be no problem cutting some fat off of the non-public safety expenditures. A lot of us were critical of Ballard's spin, but with his eventual victory last November, he and his supporters finally had their chance to prove us all wrong.
Fast-forward six weeks, and watch what happens when an unprepared and uninformed Ballard is finally confronted with the reality of how local government works. He testified before the House Ways and Means committee today, and was asked repeatedly what he was prepared to do in order to address the projected $41 million shortfall due to property tax restructuring.
Ballard, who was elected in November in a giant political upset over Democrat incumbent Bart Peterson, told lawmakers that he would like to see the state pick up the cost of police and fire pensions, which will cost Marion County $25 million to $27 million this year.
He told lawmakers that there's "fluff" in the Marion County budget. But he had few answers for them on where he would cut.
"Everything is on the table," he said, but repeatedly fended off questions by saying he had only been in office five weeks.
State Rep. Win Moses, D-Fort Wayne and a former mayor, said that answer wasn't good enough, and pressed for more details.
Asked if police would be laid off, Ballard said no. Asked if firefighters would be cut, Ballard said "I can't say. I just don't know. You're asking me questions that I don't know."
Moses fired back: "I'm asking questions that you must know."
And, he added, "I know you don't mean everything you're saying."
Ouch.
So what you're telling me is that four months ago, Greg Ballard was talking about cutting $70 million from the city budget without touching public safety, and now he isn't sure what he will do with a revenue shortfall of just over half of that? And he can't promise to not touch firefighter staffing levels?
Are you kidding me?
Aside from the fact that he looked like a complete idiot in front of the legislators -- a fact that did not escape the Accidental Mayor blog -- it certainly looks like Greg Ballard has in a matter of six weeks effectively thrown out his campaign pledges to dissatisfied taxpayers.
Where was Ballard when the time came to make his stand for property tax repeal in the General Assembly?
1. Lobby the state legislature to pass a constitutional amendment eliminating property taxes in Indiana. I believe that with the current makeup of the legislature, 35-40% of legislators approve of such a measure.
2. Failing a state constitutional amendment, I will find an acceptable mix of taxes within Marion County to greatly reduce the influence of property taxes in Indianapolis. This will help bring the middle class back to Indianapolis, increasing the overall tax base and reducing the tax burden on the poor.
We must have missed his bold move in support of property tax repeal, but I think its safe to say that the befuddled mayor didn't look like he was prepared to find his ass in that chair today, let alone an "acceptable mix of taxes" that he could work with.
Oh, and don't forget that he railed against the income tax increase like there was no tomorrow when it was passed. When was the last time you heard the guy talking about what a bad idea that was?
It turns out that effective governing is a lot more difficult than it looks like on television.
Matt Kelty isn't the only one with financial woes these days. It turns out that the "successful" fundraising drive held by the shattered Allen County Republicans was only a short-term fix to an even larger problem: They can't pay the bills.
Two months after asking party supporters for financial help, the Allen County Republican Party is three months behind on its rent.
Building co-owner Ken Neumeister said the party hit the three-month mark this week for its headquarters at 135 W. Main St., but did not give a deadline of when the party may be forced out.
"Anything's possible. We definitely want to rent it out," Neumeister said.
Ouch. It helps that GOP Chair Steve Shine owns one-third of the building, but the fact that the estranged executive director owns the other two-thirds probably isn't a huge plus.
Oh well, it looks like Shine and the guys will be joining Kelty in busted-ville.
As it turns out, the Allen County GOP actually won't have to shut their doors after one of the most disastrous election cycles in recent memory. Faced with a Mayoral candidate whose indicted coattails did more harm than good across Fort Wayne, the local operation was in a dire position after the November contest. A desperate plea went out for money, and it looks like Steve "Thank God I don't have to publicly support Matt Kelty anymore" Shine pulled out a temporary reprieve.
Chairman Steve Shine on Monday said the party was able to raise the needed cash to keep the downtown headquarters open full time. Shine said many of the donors said having a vibrant headquarters was a priority for the party. Shine sent a letter to party supporters in December saying the party needed $20,000 by the end of January to pay its bills.
Although Shine declined to say how much was raised, he said he was pleased with the support given by party loyalists. But he said the challenge is far from over.
"We're going to have to continually aggressively raise funds all year long," he said. "It's not a temporary situation. Fundraising among political organizations and candidates is not as fruitful because of the fact people need money for other reasons."
Another day, another frivolous, time-wasting motion filed on behalf of indicted ex-mayoral candidate Matt Kelty. Perhaps if the Kelty folks were this meticulous in their reading of the law to begin with, they wouldn't find themselves in this mess? Rebecca S. Green of the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette brings the latest:
In a motion filed Tuesday, Indianapolis-based attorneys Larry Mackey and Jason Barclay argue special prosecutor Dan Sigler obtained a faulty indictment from the grand jury.
They base this argument on a December motion filed by Sigler seeking to amend the indictments to include the words "knowingly and intentionally" under the elements of the crime, words left off in what Sigler characterized as a "scrivener's error."
[...]
While Kelty's attorneys argue the indictment filed is defective and the grand jury itself should be dismissed, Sigler said the phrase was inadvertently left off but was communicated properly to the grand jurors as they deliberated. The state has the right to amend the indictment up to 30 days before the omnibus court hearing date, which is set for early February.
Sigler's December motion met the deadline, he said.
Two of defeated mayoral candidate Matt Kelty's attorneys have withdrawn from his criminal case, although they did not give a reason.
Local attorneys Travis Friend and Frank J. Gray filed a motion in Allen Superior Court on Friday seeking to withdraw as Kelty's attorneys. They sent Kelty a letter Dec. 26, while he was on vacation, informing him of their intention to withdraw. Kelty is also represented by Indianapolis-based attorneys Larry Mackey and Jason Barclay, both with Barnes & Thornburg.
What's your guess? A lack of funds, a lack of a case, or perhaps they were just pissed they didn't get an invite for the cruise?
After watching the eccentric, small-town system of voting last night as part of the Democratic caucus system in Iowa, one gets sort of nostalgic for the idea of voting and democracy. And then you wake up this morning, turn on your RSS feeds, and you get a face full of electoral disputes across the Hoosier state. Oh well -- at least Obama's speech was great.
First up is the Anderson mayoral election. To recap: Democrat Kris Ockomon won the election over his GOP opponent. He has been sworn in and is now the mayor. His Republican rival, though, has been convinced by a bunch of legal "experts" within his own party that they have a case against Ockomon's residency as a candidate. As such, he has refused to "leave office," working as the city's second mayor out of an undisclosed location of sorts.
Ockomon said he had lived in a home with an Anderson address that was near the town of Chesterfield. On Nov. 2, 2006, Ockomon signed a lease for an Anderson apartment and moved in the next day.
"(The plaintiffs) have issues with when the utilities were turned on (Nov. 14), but the weather was fairly warm," Ockomon said. "There were plumbing and electrical problems."
[...]
Smith said he had been working to turn over the office to Ockomon, but after speaking to the five plaintiffs, he decided to support them.
"During my conversation with the plaintiffs' attorneys, they pointed out I was constitutionally obligated not to step down if the elected candidate was not a legitimate candidate," Smith said.
Ockomon said he was surprised by the lawsuit and thought some of the tactics were tacky.
"The timing was very poor," he said. "It's just sour grapes. Poor losers -- that's the way you have to look at it."
The other fiasco is in Muncie, where the mayoral race has taken a well-documented turn toward the absurd. That's the word used by Democrat James Mansfield's attorneys in response to a motion filed by Sharon McShurley's camp attempting to kill the movement to revote in the contested precinct.
His motion calls Mansfield's petition a "flagrant and shameless attempt" to overturn the recount supervised by Barnet and to usurp or overturn proceedings still pending in Barnet's court.
In an interview, Quirk said it should be remembered that Mansfield received more votes than McShurley. "That's not disputed," he said.
And in this case, strict compliance with the statute's 14-day deadline to file a petition would produce "absurd results," Quirk said. It didn't become known until after the deadline that a Republican clerk in the election room "didn't do her job" during distribution of the 19 ballots in question, Quirk added.
"A lot of statutes read literally to the letter of the law produce absurd results," the attorney said. "That's what this would be -- an absurd result."
For more background on the Muncie case, I once again urge you to check out ManfromMiddletown's excellent coverage. (Parts I, II, III, IV)
I've been getting some inquiries as to where the Anderson mayoral race stands at the moment. As of this morning, there is still a pending request for a special judge to be appointed for the purpose of ruling on the residency charges raised by defeated GOP incumbent. At the moment, said defeated Republican is refusing to vacate his office, even though his victorious Democratic opponent has already been sworn in as Anderson's new mayor.
Madison Superior Court Judge Dennis Carroll's request for a special judge states that all of the county's judges believe they have a conflict of interest in the case.
A lawsuit filed last week mostly by former employees of Republican Kevin Smith's administration contends that Kris Ockomon, a Democrat who defeated Smith in the Nov. 6 election, failed to meet a one-year legal residency requirement to run for mayor.
A judge denied the lawsuit's request for the restraining order last week, but did not rule on its request for a permanent injunction.
Smith said he won't give up his claim to the mayor's office until a judge rules on the entirety of the lawsuit questioning the residency of Ockomon, who was sworn in Tuesday as mayor.
Sam Hasler over at Trifles from Anderson has some more details on the legal wrangling going on behind the scenes. I would suggest checking out his entire post, but one key fact he brings up:
Kris Ockomon is in the mayor's office. No one opposed him from taking over the office and starting his duties as Anderson's Mayor.
Kevin Smith reported for duty at the Anderson Police Department.
Sounds like a mess to me. Sam seems to have talked to people who believe that the residency issue has been fabricated, and Ockomon did all that was needed before launching his bid.
Could someone please take the McShurley for Mayor button off of the Star Press editorial board's collective shirt?
Jim Mansfield wants a do-over. It's understandable. He was riding high as the mayor-elect for a few weeks until after a recount, when he became an also-ran.
In other words: Jim Mansfield wants a do-over. It's understandable. He was riding high as the mayor-elect for a few weeks until a recount, when a clerical error by a Republican official was revealed, at which point he became the guy-who-got-the-most-votes-but- doesn't-get-to-be-mayor.
On one level, I do agree with the basic (though convoluted) argument that is being made here regarding the need for a complete, city-wide re-vote. Unfortunately, the piece spends so much time muddling around with thinly-veiled attacks on Democratic efforts to address the situation that you don't really see that point being addressed.
Yesterday we discussed the legal action taken by James Manfield's campaign as they ask for a recount of the district that was disenfranchised by a Republican clerk's carelessness, handing the contentious mayoral election the his GOP opponent. Today brings word that more legal wrangling is at hand, as Mansfield's lawyers seek to take the case outside of Delaware County.
The change-of-venue request cites heavy media coverage and the fact that Sharon McShurley's husband, attorney Ron McShurley, works as a public defender for every judge in Delaware County.
Lennington had not made a decision on either petition as of Friday afternoon. He has 20 days from Thursday to hear arguments from both parties as to whether a special election should take place, according to state law. A special election in just one precinct is allowed under state law.
Delaware County Republican Party Chairwoman Kaye Whitehead said she believed the issue of a special election is irrelevant, however, because Democrats missed the deadline to file for a special election.
The deadline would have been 14 days after the Nov. 6 election for Mansfield and 17 days after the election for the Democratic Party chairman, Marge Landers, Whitehead said.
"We are well beyond that deadline," the GOP chairman added.
Quirk said he believed a judge would have the authority to override the deadline and grant a special election because the problems with Precinct 46's absentee ballots were not discovered until mid-December, during the recount.
The Indiana Secretary of State's office was unaware of any precedent in which a judge allowed a special election after the November deadline had passed, spokeswoman Allison Fore said Friday.
A re-vote would not cost much, would not take much time or effort, and would allow for a full, fair vote by everyone who was denied that right in November. Let's hope the courts see it that way.
The Democratic mayoral candidate is seeking a special election in a precinct where a recount commission disallowed 19 ballots, costing him the race.
An attorney for James Mansfield filed a petition contesting the election Thursday in Delaware Circuit Judge Wayne Lennington's court.
[...]
The proposed special election would include only voters in the city's 46th precinct, where the votes were disallowed, Mansfield said in a news release Thursday.
"The voters in Precinct 46 exercised their constitutional rights to cast a ballot in this election only to be disenfranchised by the commission based on an error made by a Republican appointee in the Republican controlled county clerk's office," the release said. "All voters in Precinct 46 deserve to have their votes counted."
The petition names the county election board and McShurley as defendants.
I'll have more on this later as the story develops.
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