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The three judges tasked with deciding whether Parkersburg, WV Mayor Robert Newell should be removed from office say testimony related to his alleged adultery will be allowed.
The hearing, set to convene at 9 a.m. Thursday, June 4, was scheduled after the chairman of the Wood County Republican Party, Rob Cornelius, petitioned for Newell's removal, claiming his alleged misconduct, malfeasance and neglect of office warranted his ouster.
Cornelius claims Newell "committed official misconduct and proved himself incompetent" through his alleged affair with a city employee, and said the mayor's "improper relations with co-workers, in violation of the city's employment manual, has been the...cause of multiple costly civil lawsuits filed against the city."
The petition also claimed Newell improperly used city purchasing cards and funds on extravagant trips "that were not specifically for official city business," citing a hotel bill for an overnight trip to Indianapolis in October for $521 as evidence.
It also accused Newell of attempting a cover up through his denials to media.
Newell petitioned to exclude evidence concerning the alleged affair because adultery was decriminalized by the Legislature several years ago, and argued in a recent brief the Legislature overlooked the removal statutes during its repeal of those laws.
In an eight-page order released June 2, Judge Omar Aboulhosn said since the removal statute had not been amended, adultery is still grounds for removal. It will be up to the three judges, however, to decide if the evidence is enough to warrant his removal.
"The petition ... is premised specifically upon adultery and wasting public money, which are grounds expressly provided for in the (removal) statute," Aboulhosn wrote. "The petition does not concern private citizens' conduct in their own private bedrooms. The allegations contained in the petition are grounds for removal of a municipal officer deemed improper by the Legislature at the time it enacted the removal statute. This panel is simply without authority to exclude the evidence and testimony on the issue of adultery," which is still a basis for a removal petition.
Aboulhosn also ruled evidence presented at the hearing will deal only with the charges contained in the original notice and said extensive information on an "anonymously supplied" thumb drive "purportedly supporting the specific factual allegations contained in the petition" must be authenticated.
He said the judges will require Cornelius "to have the appropriate witnesses who can authenticate the evidence requested to be admitted for the record, but without authentication, this panel will not consider it," he said.
Aboulhosn said while Newell is required to be at the hearing, it's not a criminal proceeding and thus the Fifth Amendment isn't applicable.
"It appears ... that though the respondent cannot be compelled to testify and may refuse to do so, this panel is free to interpret the respondent's refusal to testify as an adverse inference," Aboulhosn added.
Newell's wife, Debbie, is slated to be called as a witness for Cornelius. Newell contends anything he told her would be covered by spousal privilege, but Aboulhosn said that's a decision the tribunal will make based on the "circumstances" of any conversations the couple had.
Cornelius asked the court to disqualify Newell's attorney, Harry Deitzler of Hill, Peterson, Carper, Bee & Deitzler, saying Deitzler or his firm represented area residents in DuPont C8 class action and suggesting "many of the witnesses" on both sides are likely to be clients, but Aboulhosn refused.
The judge questioned the timing of the filing of the motion "when it was apparent from the beginning of this proceeding, including before this action was initiated by the petitioner, that Mr. Deitzler represented (Newell)."
The hearing, set to convene at 9 a.m. Thursday, June 4, was scheduled after the chairman of the Wood County Republican Party, Rob Cornelius, petitioned for Newell's removal, claiming his alleged misconduct, malfeasance and neglect of office warranted his ouster.
Cornelius claims Newell "committed official misconduct and proved himself incompetent" through his alleged affair with a city employee, and said the mayor's "improper relations with co-workers, in violation of the city's employment manual, has been the...cause of multiple costly civil lawsuits filed against the city."
The petition also claimed Newell improperly used city purchasing cards and funds on extravagant trips "that were not specifically for official city business," citing a hotel bill for an overnight trip to Indianapolis in October for $521 as evidence.
It also accused Newell of attempting a cover up through his denials to media.
Newell petitioned to exclude evidence concerning the alleged affair because adultery was decriminalized by the Legislature several years ago, and argued in a recent brief the Legislature overlooked the removal statutes during its repeal of those laws.
In an eight-page order released June 2, Judge Omar Aboulhosn said since the removal statute had not been amended, adultery is still grounds for removal. It will be up to the three judges, however, to decide if the evidence is enough to warrant his removal.
"The petition ... is premised specifically upon adultery and wasting public money, which are grounds expressly provided for in the (removal) statute," Aboulhosn wrote. "The petition does not concern private citizens' conduct in their own private bedrooms. The allegations contained in the petition are grounds for removal of a municipal officer deemed improper by the Legislature at the time it enacted the removal statute. This panel is simply without authority to exclude the evidence and testimony on the issue of adultery," which is still a basis for a removal petition.
Aboulhosn also ruled evidence presented at the hearing will deal only with the charges contained in the original notice and said extensive information on an "anonymously supplied" thumb drive "purportedly supporting the specific factual allegations contained in the petition" must be authenticated.
He said the judges will require Cornelius "to have the appropriate witnesses who can authenticate the evidence requested to be admitted for the record, but without authentication, this panel will not consider it," he said.
Aboulhosn said while Newell is required to be at the hearing, it's not a criminal proceeding and thus the Fifth Amendment isn't applicable.
"It appears ... that though the respondent cannot be compelled to testify and may refuse to do so, this panel is free to interpret the respondent's refusal to testify as an adverse inference," Aboulhosn added.
Newell's wife, Debbie, is slated to be called as a witness for Cornelius. Newell contends anything he told her would be covered by spousal privilege, but Aboulhosn said that's a decision the tribunal will make based on the "circumstances" of any conversations the couple had.
Cornelius asked the court to disqualify Newell's attorney, Harry Deitzler of Hill, Peterson, Carper, Bee & Deitzler, saying Deitzler or his firm represented area residents in DuPont C8 class action and suggesting "many of the witnesses" on both sides are likely to be clients, but Aboulhosn refused.
The judge questioned the timing of the filing of the motion "when it was apparent from the beginning of this proceeding, including before this action was initiated by the petitioner, that Mr. Deitzler represented (Newell)."
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