Fox guarding the henhouse

The decision in the Recall Them All 2012 hearing by the Arizona Court of Appeals is expected in a few weeks.

This case is about more than just the recall of Yuma City Council members Paul Johnson and Jerry Stuart. The city of Yuma's Phoenix-based lawyers once again argued if recall signatures are declared insufficient by the city clerk, that word is final. It's nearly analogous to the fox guarding the henhouse.

In this case, city employees declared a recall petition against two city elected officials (their bosses) insufficient. Then, matters turned more deleterious when Superior Court Judge Nelson ruled with the out-of-town lawyers' argument of “no jurisdiction.”

Here's the foxy part. At this very moment, someone can recall-process city elected officials all they want, but that's as far as anyone will get, as long as the same clan gets to count the votes with no accountability.

Hopefully, the appellate court gets this right and then all the signatures can be counted. In the meantime, I recommend the city stop blocking recall elections and forgo the spending of taxpayer money to defend their own.

Stephen Henry

Yuma