At Monday’s Jefferson County Quorum Court meeting, tempers flared during a tense clash between County Judge Gerald Robinson and the justices of the peace. The source of the conflict was the passage of ordinances and the legality of past quorum court meetings.
The gathering, filled with concerned citizens, rapidly descended into a series of heated arguments as Justice of the Peace Lloyd Franklin Jr. and Robinson engaged in a debate over these matters.
Prior to the meeting, Justice of the Peace Alfred Carroll Sr. excused himself, expressing concern over his safety upon discovering that Robinson was openly carrying a firearm. He maintained that Robinson was not a law enforcement officer and therefore not authorized to carry the weapon.
“You do recognize this is an open carry state?” Robinson told Carroll.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
“Even in the state of open carry there are some restrictions,” replied Carroll.
As the meeting progressed, Franklin, visibly frustrated, urged Robinson to address the rumors circulating about the quorum court, seeking clarity on the matter.
During the public comment section of a quorum court meeting, Franklin posed three questions to Robinson in a sarcastic tone: 1) Is the quorum court stealing? 2) Are the secondary meetings held with the majority of the quorum court members illegal? 3) Do public comments have to be directly related to the agenda items being discussed?
“Where does the general public go to speak to the quorum court about complaints and concerns that are not on the agenda?” asked Franklin, who said the secondary meetings are held to take care of agenda items that Robinson refuses to add to his agenda.
“As far as the meetings being illegal or not, that’s something that you need to talk to your attorney about,” said Robinson. “You have an attorney. We’re under litigation. Ask your attorney.”
Amid the heated exchange, the banging of the gavel by Robinson only fueled Franklin’s ire, prompting him to raise his voice even louder in response.
“Do you have an attorney?” asked Robinson.
“Apparently, we don’t,” responded Franklin, who said Robinson refuses to pay for their attorney. “You won’t pay. Kyle [Hunter] won’t represent us.”
During the meeting, Franklin and Robinson engaged in a heated discussion, interrupting each other. Franklin requested that the agenda items drafted by the majority of the quorum court members be included in the agenda set by the judge’s office. After banging his gavel, Robinson instructed the secretary to resume the meeting.
As the first ordinance came up, Justice of the Peace Ted Harden made a motion to suspend the rules and read by title only where applicable.
“I don’t agree with suspending the rules,” said Franklin. “I don’t agree with reading by title only because it hides whatever is in the ordinance from the general public.”
Franklin said they have to read their items three times to pass anything at three separate meetings and disagreed with suspending the rules to get the other measures out in one meeting.
Franklin, however, voted yes to suspend the rules though he said he disagreed with the action. The three ordinances were appropriation ordinances to fund Sixth Division, Drug Court Accountability and Fifth Division.
It was at the adjournment of the meeting that tempers began to rise even more.
“You read the title one time instead of three times, we did not vote by roll call so everything we just did, nothing was passed today,” said Franklin. “You don’t know what you’re doing.”
Robinson referred to Franklin as “mister know-it-all.”
“We didn’t pass nothing tonight. It was a joke and a waste of time,” said Franklin. According to Franklin, in a sidebar conversation with attorney Terry Wynn, if the rules aren’t suspended, the measure must be read three times.
“They did not suspend the rules and move it to its third reading,” said Franklin.
After the meeting, Robinson told The Commercial that everything was passed properly.
“The motion was made to suspend the rules and move to the third reading where applicable,” said Robinson. “All of them where applicable to moving on to the third reading.”
Robinson said Franklin’s vote was contradictory to his argument.
“This is all an opportunity for Justice Franklin to blow some more smoke screen in there,” said Robinson. “The whole thing with the quorum court is that we are going to court in August on the very question that he asked me as to whether the meetings are illegal or not.”
Explaining that the quorum court still does not have procedural rules in place, Robinson said all legislation comes through his office. Regarding Carroll’s departure because of the firearm carried by Robinson, Robinson stated that if there are concerns about his open carry, the state Legislature should be addressed. However, Robinson noted that the courthouse is a controlled environment, and Carroll interacts with many individuals daily, some of whom may be carrying firearms without his knowledge.
Franklin said he believes the quorum court will revisit the matter of the legality of the passage of ordinances at its meeting next month. However, given the intensity of Monday night’s disagreements, reaching a consensus appears increasingly unlikely.