A hearing to determine whether on not the alleged criminal record of Gould Alderman Harry Hall will be released has been scheduled for Feb. 2 in Star City.
Circuit Court Judge Rob Wyatt will preside at the hearing, which is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Lincoln County Courthouse.
The hearing comes as the result of a lawsuit filed in July by attorney James McMath on behalf of Samuel King and Norvell Dixon, two members of the Gould Citizens Advisory Council, a private nonprofit citizens group.
The suit seeks to have Hall and fellow Gould Alderman Rosieanna Smith removed from office.
The suit says that Hall, who represents Ward 2, “has a criminal record, which is on file with the Jefferson County Circuit Clerk’s office, which, though under seal …” disqualifies him from holding elected office.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
King and Dixon also claim that Smith is unqualified for office because she ran for and was elected to her position as alderman of Ward 2 in 2010 when, at that time and at present, she lives at 704 North First Street in Ward 1.
Dumas attorney Howard “Corky” Holthoff, who is representing Hall and Smith, in September filed a response denying that Smith is a resident of Ward 1 and charges that the “petitioners should be required to specifically prove their conclusions and inferences.”
Concerning Hall’s record, Holthoff’s response in September that Hall will “neither admit nor deny the allegations … but request that this Court require petitioners to provide strict proof thereof …”
Holthoff also said that a specific statute cited in the suit regarding pardons is “inapplicable to the facts herein.”