With the Oct. 15 deadline for submission of a recall petition to unseat Dist. 3 City Councilman Dennis Paul Williams approaching, the St. Martin Clerk of Court’s office reports that the petition has not yet been submited. The effort has been marked by legal disputes over the required disclosure of the list in progress.
A decision handed down by 16th Judicial District Court Judge Keith Comeaux required recall custodian Deja Alexander to make the partial list available to Williams for inspection at regular intervals. Williams’ attorney, Allan Durand, said he had received a partial list on Aug. 4, but no updated lists since then.
In a second hearing on Aug. 27, before Judge Comeaux, Alexander, represented by attorney Xavier Alexander, contended that the recall list was in “active use,” which would possibly satisfy a clause in the statute that would allow more time for it to be provided. However, Comeaux rejected that contention and levied a $1,000 fine against Alexander for failure to comply with the court order.
Durand said this week that no updated list has been provided. Deja Alexander told the Teche News that she actually has offered an updated list for inspection. She said she believes a full petition with the required 347 valid signatures can be submitted by the Oct. 15 deadline.
If the required number of signatures is approved by the Clerk of Court, a special election will be called and Dist. 3 voters will decide whether to unseat Williams. The recall seeks to nullify Williams’ successful reelection bid in last April’s election. He prevailed against opponent Mourice Smith by the margin of 241 to 206, with 50 percent of eligible voters participating.
