May 19, 2010 Scott Purkey Is No Longer a Member of County Civil Service Board

Rusty Cantwell, Hamblen County's attorney, and Jeff Taylor, attorney for the Hamblen County Civil Service Board, have reviewed the case law and citations that I provided to Taylor about a month ago and have agreed that Scott Purkey legally gave up his position on the Civil Service Board last fall when he accepted appointment to the Construction Board of Appeals. 

Scott Purkey is the nephew of County Mayor David Purkey and former Sheriff Otto Purkey. Scott was  appointed to the Hamblen County Civil Service Board in early 2009.

Although state law says that a member of the civil service board can not hold any other elected or appointed position in the county, Scott accepted appointment as a member of the Construction Board of Appeals in the fall of 2009.

When I pointed out to the Hamblen County Commission that Scott's membership on two boards was a violation of the civil service act, Scott tried to resolve the problem---and hold onto his Civil Service Board position--- by resigning from the Construction Board of Appeals. [And, no, the local "news"paper didn't report this intial allegation during the public comments portion of a Hamblen County Commission  meeting]

The problem with Scott's violation of the law and his attempt to fix it by resigning from the Construction Board of Appeals---as I mentioned in several earlier blog posts--is that there is case law that when an individual accepts a second "incompatible office,"  he automatically gives up the first office.

Scott was appointed to the civil service board first. When he accepted appointment to the board of construction appeals at a later date, he voluntarily and automatically gave up his civil service position since he could not serve on both and chose to accept the board of construction appeals appointment.

Click here, here, and here.

But never fear, Scott is launching a campaign to get re-appointed to the Civil Service Board. And  there are several county commissioners who will do whatever Scott and his uncles (County Mayor David Purkey and former Sheriff Otto Purkey) ask as the Purkeys continue to nip at Sheriff Esco Jarnagin's heels because Jarnagin defeated Scott's Uncle Otto and David's brother Otto in 2006.

A lot of people think that county commissioners would not and should not appoint people who have been and who are active opponents of the Sheriff to the Civil Service Board.  Independence and fairness should be the hallmark of service on the Civil Service Board.

Because current Sheriff Esco Jarnagin defeated Scott's Uncle Otto Purkey in 2006, appointing Scott Purkey to the Civil Service Board that handles grievances against Sheriff Jarnagin is like stacking a jury with friends of the Defendant. 

Civil service was adopted as a means to help remove politics from the Sheriff's department. Scott Purkey should not even ask to be appointed to a Board that handles grievances against the man who defeated his Uncle Otto, but he will. 

Scott Purkey's  first and now this second effort to get on the Hamblen County Civil Service Board is tainted and compromised by his political and family ties to the man (Otto Purkey) who lost a heated political race to current Sheriff Esco Jarnagin in 2006.

But this is Hamblen County, and the Purkeys, who still haven't forgotten and haven't moved past Jarnagin's victory over Otto in 2006, continue to try to make things difficult for Jarnagin. It will be interesting to watch the politics of Scott Purkey's push to get back on the Civil Service Board where he can vote on issues involving the man (Esco Jarnagin) who defeated his Uncle Otto Purkey.

It will be interesting to watch as commissioners put on blinders to vote for Scott Purkey, ignoring the political and family ties that naturally compromise and raise questions about Scott's independence and fairness in anything involving Esco Jarnagin. 

If the shoe were on the other foot, wonder how many commissioners would appoint someone with strong family and political ties to their opponent(s) to a board that handles grievances against commissioners?

If a commissioner were a defendant in a trial, how many commissioners would want to have the trial before a judge or jury with strong family and political ties to their opponent?

April 12, 2010 Burzell Appeals Termination To Civil Service Board

As I thought would happen, Ernie Burzell filed a complaint/appeal with the Civil Service Board over his termination as a deputy under the Civil Service Act. See previous post here. Burzell wrote a letter to the Civil Service Board (Joel Seal, Scott Purkey, and Tim Horner) on March 23, 2010, stating that he wants to "appeal" his termination by Sheriff Esco Jarnagin. He asks the Board to advise Jarnagin not to fill any positions opened as a result of "Sheriff Jarnagin's interpretation of the law regarding deputies running for Sheriff."

I can understand that Burzell and the other deputies (Rucker and Kitts) are upset. This whole matter has been a mess. 

But for Burzell to say that he or the other deputies were fired as a result of "Sheriff Jarnagin's interpretation of the law" is ridiculous. 

It was the STATE attorney general's interpretation of the law--as found in three different opinions--that said deputies who are covered under civil service can not run for sheriff.  The STATE AG also noted that the federal Hatch Act may also prevent deputies from running for sheriff.

It was HAMBLEN COUNTY'S attorney Rusty Cantwell who, after the third STATE attorney general's opinion came out, told Jarnagin that he (Jarnagin) had no choice but to dismiss the deputies (Burzell, Kitts, and Rucker) who were running for sheriff.

Civil service gives deputies protection from political firings BUT, according to the STATE AG, there is a trade-off for this job protection. The STATE AG has opined that deputies, who are covered under civil service, are not allowed to run a political campaign for Sheriff.

Prior to the adoption of Civil Service in Hamblen County, deputies could be hired without any detailed testing standards and could be fired for just about any reason or for no real reason.  

Prior to teh adoption of Civil Service in Hamblen County, there was no civil service board with whom a grievance could be filed when an adverse job action occurred. 

Prior to the adoption of Civil Service in Hamblen County, deputies could and were required or "strongly encouraged" by Otto Purkey and other incumbent sheriffs to campaign for their boss.

Not every county in Tennessee has adopted the 1974 Civil Service Act.  Hamblen County deputies, however, pushed for civil service in Hamblen County. During his last term in office (2002-2006), Sheriff Otto Purkey joined the deputies in asking the County Commission to adopt Civil Service and the Commission subsequently voted Civil Service in.

Now the deputies are seeing the flip-side of civil service. The STATE AG has interpreted the civil service act as requiring that a deputy resign or be terminated prior to announcing a run for Sheriff. The COUNTY ATTORNEY, after the third AG Opinion was released, advised the current Sheriff to dismiss the deputies running for office if they refused to resign.

Burzell is within his right to appeal his termination. He is flat out wrong, however, when he refers in his appeal to the terminations being "a result of Sheriff Jarnagin's interpretation of the law."  He should have said he wants the civil service board to review actions taken "as a result of three STATE AG opinions and as a result of the advice of County Attorney Rusty Cantwell."

Read the STATE AG's interpretation of the civil service act and deputies running for office here, here, and here.  Read County Attorney Rusty Cantwell's advice to Jarnagin here.

March 24, 2010 Watch for a Grievance To Be Filed Against Esco Jarnagin; UPDATE: Read Attorney Cantwell's Letter to Jarnagin Advising Jarnagin To Dismiss Deputies

It is very possible that one or more of the deputies who were recently fired by Sheriff Jarnagin will file a grievance with the Civil Service Board over the terminations.

Jarnagin was recently force to terminate the deputies on the advice of County Attorney Rusty Cantwell in order to comply with the Civil Service Act that was adopted in Hamblen County during the term of former Sheriff Otto Purkey. 

To read Cantwell's letter and his advice to Jarnagin to "dismiss" the deputies, click or double-click on the letter (below) to enlarge it. Cantwell's letter was issued after a third attorney general's opinion (March 2010) again said that deputies in any county that has adopted the County Sheriff's Civil Service Act of 1974 can not run for sheriff. 

Click here for a prior post on this topic and links to the prior AG opinions (October 2009 and January 2010) on deputies covered under civil service running for office.

If a grievance is filed, will Scott Purkey--who has been serving illegally on the Civil Service Board for several months--hear the grievance? Click here. Scott is former Sheriff Otto Purkey's nephew. He is also the nephew of current County Mayor David Purkey, and the son of Junior Purkey.

March 20, 2010 Scott Purkey Resigns One Position After Serving Illegally on Civil Service Board for Months

At the Thursday county commission meeting (March 18), I passed out a section of the Civil Service Act to all commissioners and to the press. After reading TCA Section 8-8-406 aloud, I pointed out the obvious, this one-sentence section says that a Civil Service Board member can NOT hold any elected or appointed office within the county.

Click here for my previous post and to view the state law (TCA 8-8-406) that I handed out to the press and to the commissioners.

I then informed the commissioners that Civil Service Board member Scott Purkey has been serving illegally as a member of the Civil Service Board for many months because he is not only on the Civil Service Board but he is also on the Board of Construction Appeals.   [Maybe it is just coincidence, but the Scott Purkey who has been allowed to serve illegally on the Civil Service Board just happens to be the nephew of County Mayor David Purkey and former Sheriff Otto Purkey and is the son of Junior Purkey a/k/a the Purkey Posse.]

I was told today that Scott Purkey hustled to the Courthouse and resigned from the Board of Construction Appeals yesterday, one day after his nearly 6-month violation of the Civil Service Act was made public. One has to wonder if Purkey ever read the Civil Service Act--either before or after he was appointed to the Civil
Service Board. The law that he was to uphold and administer clearly says that you can't be on the Civil Service Board and hold any other elected or appointed office.

UPDATE: Purkey's rush to resign from the Board of Construction Appeals is an obvious attempt to preserve his position on the Civil Service Board where he can continue his partisan activities. David Purkey will try to keep Scott in that position even though there is support for the proposition that Scott already gave up his position on the Civil Service Board automatically on the day that he accepted appointment to the Construction Board of Appeals.

If you are thinking that you didn't see any report of this in the "news"paper, it's because the local "news"paper didn't report it.  Now we'll have to wait for Sunday's paper to see if the "news"paper bothers to report that the allegation was made, that Purkey was in fact in violation of the Civil Service Act for about six months, and that he then resigned from the Board of Construction Appeals to try to keep his Civil Service Board seat. Do NOT hold your breath on this one.

It would be a real shocker if the "news"paper actually did some follow-up and asked Scott Purkey about this and whether he has ever read any part of the Civil Service Act. Nah, that won't happen. The local "news"paper follows a Don't Ask & Don't Tell policy on "news" about elected and appointed officials. 

"News" doesn't exist unless it is "news" that has been pre-approved for publication by the powers-that-be.

March 19, 2010 Is Civil Service Board Member Scott Purkey Serving Illegally?

The 1974 Sheriff's Civil Service Act which has been adopted in Hamblen County provides for a three-person civil service board to test applicants, draw up employment rosters, etc.

The members of the Hamblen County Civil Service Board are Joel Seal, Tim Horner, and Scott Purkey. It is difficult to keep the tangled web of Courthouse kinships straight, but I understand that Scott Purkey is Mayor David Purkey and former Sheriff Otto Purkey's nephew and Junior Purkey's son. David, Otto, and Junior are brothers.

Yesterday at county commission, I provided the commissioners and "news"paper reporter Bobbie Young with a copy of the above section (TCA 8-8-406) of the Civil Service Act. You can click on the image to enlarge it.

During public comments, I read this short section that includes the statement that members of the Civil Service Board "shall not hold any elected or appointed office within the county."

I then pointed out that Scott Purkey is serving on the Civil Service Board while also holding an appointed position on the Construction Board of Appeals.  No commissioner said a word. Mayor David Purkey said nothing. County Attorney Rusty Cantwell said nothing. No commissioner asked Cantwell to comment. Chairman Stancil Ford finally said that he would look into it.

First, the Civil Service Board granted leave to deputies to run for office in violation of the Civil Service Act. Click here. Now--unless somebody decides that the words "shall not hold any elected of appointed office within the county" mean the exact opposite of what they say--it looks like a member of the Civil Service Board, Scott Purkey, is not "qualified" to continue service on the Board and is violating the Civil Service Act.

Scott is not only related to former Sheriff Otto Purkey, he worked for Otto in the Sheriff Department and supported Otto in the 2006 Sheriff's election. Because of his obvious partisanship, Scott should never have been appointed to the Civil Service  Board in the first place. Out of all the people in Hamblen County, surely there is a person who meets the qualifications of the act and who can be expected to act in an impartial and knowledgeable manner in fairly administering the Civil Service Act.

Scott Purkey's initial appointment to the Civil Service Board gets back to the good old boys network and keeping everything in-house. It is obvious where that style of appointment has gotten the Civil Service Board.  We'll soon see if Scott is so desperate to stay on the Civil Service Board that he resigns his Construction Board of Appeals position or if Scott finally recognizes that his "service" on the Civil Service Board was compromised from day one and that he should resign from that Board.

Just to make sure that all the info is out. Scott was appointed to the Civil Service Board first and then many months later he was appointed to the Construction Board of Appeals.  It will be interesting to see if someone tries to justify Scott's dual service by interpreting 8-8-406 as saying that you only have to be free of other office at the time you are appointed to the Civil Service Board--then you can accept all the other appointments that you want to. 
That, in my opinion, would be an absurd position but who knows what will be done or said to protect Mayor Purkey's nephew. 

If the statute is meant to prevent a conflict in dual service on the Civil Service Board and other boards of offices, then when you are appointed to the Civil Service Board and when you are appointed to another office doesn't matter.  TCA 8-8-406 simply says members of the Board "shall not hold any elected or appointed office within the county."  Scott Purkey is a member of the Civil Service Board and holds an appointed position within the county. 

While he could "resign" from the Civil Service Board, there is support for the position that when Purkey accepted appointment to the Construction Board of Appeals, he automatically gave up/resigned his position on the Civil Service Board without any other action being taken.

March 19, 2010 Civil Service: Commissioner Bruce, Sheriff Jarnagin, and County Attorney Rusty Cantwell Tangle over Recent Firings

There were some real fireworks at the end of yesterday's county commission meeting.

Commissioner Ricky Bruce had sent a letter to commissioners expressing his concern and displeasure at the recent firing of three deputies who are running for office in Hamblen and Jefferson Counties in violation of the Civil Service Act. The three deputies are Ernie Burzell and Roy Rucker who are running for Sheriff in Hamblen County and David Kitts who is running for Sheriff in Jefferson County.

Bruce had lots of questions and comments about the law itself (he doesn't like it) and about the handling of the entire matter. Bruce wanted to blame the Sheriff for putting the three on unpaid leave and then telling them that they had to resign or be fired because of state law TCA 8-8-419.

Sheriff Jarnagin stated that the blame lies with the three-man Civil Service Board (Joel Seal, Tim Horner, and Scott Purkey). Jarnagin said that it was the Civil Service Board that granted leave to Burzell, Rucker, and Kitts, and the Sheriff then signed off on the leave. Jarnagin added that the Civil Service Board should be responsible for knowing the civil service act under which it operates and should not have granted leave. [UPDATE: Scott Purkey has been serving illegally on the Civil Service Board for many months. Click here and here.]

Cantwell tried to defend himself as he explained that he had been involved in many discussions about the law going back many months. Bruce began to realize that the civil service act as written and perhaps even the federal Hatch Act give job security to deputies but in return the deputies give up the right to run for partisan office. Bruce complained that the law makes no sense, is unfair, and he wants it changed.

Next, Bruce pushed for Jarnagin to agree not to fill the three deputy positions and to hold the jobs open until after the election if necessary. Jarnagin said that he could not do that. Bruce then asked if the county could at least continue to pay insurance for the men until some future date. County Mayor David Purkey spoke up and said that as County Mayor he is in charge of insurance and he could continue their insurance as he had done before for other individuals. 

Now I am sitting there thinking, just a minute, buster, you can't violate the terms of the insurance contract just because you are "in charge" of insurance.  County Attorney Cantwell said nothing in response to Mayor Purkey's assertion that he could take care of continuing to provide insurance for employees that had been terminated. Thankfully, Commissioner Baker spoke up and asked Cantwell if the county really could pay insurance for employees who had been terminated. Cantwell said that the insurance contract would determine who is a  full-time employee and who is eligible for county insurance. 

[Neither the Mayor nor anyone else can just decide to pick and choose and arbitrarily continue to pay insurance for people who are no longer employees.  The insurance contract does matter.  County Attorney Cantwell said nothing about Mayor Purkey's admission that he (Purkey) had continued county insurance for certain people in the past or Purkey's claim that he could continue insurance for the three deputies with a wave of the Mayoral hand.  Of course, terminated employees may have the option of continuing insurance coverage for a period of time under COBRA provisions.]

After all was said and done, Ricky Bruce was right about one thing--the situation was handled poorly.

Apparently, County Attorney Rusty Cantwell and the Civil Service Board and Sheriff Jarnagin and the deputies thought that they could get around the Civil Service Act if the deputies took a leave of absence to run for office despite two AG opinions (October 2009 and January 2010) that said when you announce for office you have violated the civil service act and must be terminated--and that added that the Federal Hatch Act may also prohibit the deputies from running for partisan office.

Then the more detailed third AG's opinion came out on March 11, 2010, saying that the Civil Service Act and the Federal Hatch Act may separately or together prohibit deputies from running for partisan elected office. The third AG's opinion specifically added that taking a leave of absence doesn't make it OK for deputies covered by civil service to run for office. It also mentioned that it didn't matter whether the deputy was running for office in his own or another county.

Rusty pointed out that the civil service board's agreement with the Sheriff to break the law by putting the men on leave is void. 

Cantwell advised Jarnagin in writing on March 16 that Jarnagin had to follow the law and had to terminate the men if they did not resign.

It was an interesting evening.