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September 12, 2012

Special prosecutor declines to file charges against Baxter Springs mayor

By Roger McKinney news@joplinglobe.com

BAXTER SPRINGS, Kan. — A special prosecutor appears to have rejected affidavits seeking misdemeanor criminal defamation charges against Mayor Jenifer Bingham.

The affidavits were filed in Baxter Springs city court by attorney Kevin Cure on behalf of council members Ed McAfee, Ron Costlow and Robert St. Clair. He had also planned to file affidavits on behalf of council members Mike Kaufmann, Ron Steele and Gary Allen.

“I don’t think we’re done,” Cure said on Wednesday.

The April 10 council meeting began this period of controversy in Baxter Springs. Bingham had named replacements for City Clerk Donna Wixon and police Chief David Edmondson. The council rejected Bingham’s appointments by a 6-2 vote. Bingham subsequently placed Wixon on paid suspension and changed the locks at City Hall. The council has since restored Wixon to her position.

City Attorney Robert Myers at Tuesday night’s council meeting said that a special prosecutor had declined to prosecute, saying the special prosecutor said the affidavits were “without any merit.” Myers had asked the city judge to appoint a special prosecutor because he would have a conflict of interest in the case.

Myers declined to identify the special prosecutor, but Cure on Wednesday said the special prosecutor reviewing the affidavits was Shane Adamson, who is with a Parsons law office.

Bingham didn’t comment on Myers’ information during the meeting, and she didn’t take questions from reporters after the meeting.

“I’m floored by it,” Cure said of Adamson’s ruling. “The affidavits laid out the case.”

Adamson, through a secretary, declined to comment.

Cure said he also was unable to reach Adamson for an explanation on Wednesday.

“I don’t know his basis for declining prosecution,” he said.

The affidavits allege that Bingham at the April 24 council meeting claimed she had a photo of council members conducting an illegal meeting, contrary to the Kansas open-meetings law. The affidavits state that no such gathering took place, and that Bingham didn’t have any photo.

“It was a lie to accomplish political objectives,” Cure said Wednesday.

The affidavits state the mayor’s comments exposed the council members to public hatred, contempt or ridicule, and deprived them of public confidence. They also allege that the mayor’s statements prompted the circulation of recall petitions against the mayor’s opponents.

Cure said the council members have other options, if they want to pursue them. One is to hire another attorney to file the charge in district court, where the charge would be criminal false communication. The county attorney would have the option of dismissing the case.

He said there also is the option of pursuing a civil defamation lawsuit against the mayor, the petition organizers, or both.

“All they want is to have her under oath and answer questions,” Cure said of the council members.



Issue element

Recall elections for Ed McAfee, Gary Allen and Ron Costlow will be on the Nov. 6 ballot. The petitions that were circulated seeking the recall claimed the council members had violated the open-meetings law.

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