Emergency meeting questioned

BY VALERIE REDDELL
Contributing Editor

CORRIGAN — Corrigan City Council held a special called meeting at 10 a.m. Monday, and, according to the agenda made available to the Polk County Enterprise after the meeting was held, “deliberated the employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline, or dismissal, of a public officer or employee. “A. Discuss Police Department issues.” The Enterprise discussed the contents of that agenda with Charles Daughtry, a Houston attorney who specializes in the Texas Open Meetings and Open Records issues. “Calling an emergency meeting without taking any action, or even giving notice on the agenda that you intend to discuss taking any action is an illegal meeting,” Daughtry said. A number of sources told reporters with the Polk County Enterprise and the Corrigan Times that officials met with the intent of fi ring Corrigan Police Chief Ray Stubbs, and City Councilwoman Johnna Lowe has had a long-running public battle with the Police Chief. “To justify an emergency, closed door meeting to terminate the police chief you would have to have some clearly documented reason that it has to be done immediately and not at the next regular meeting,” Daughtry added. “The only time I have ever seen a city call an emergency meeting to remove a police chief is if he is charged with a felony offense. But Ray Stubbs has not been charged with any offense. The meeting agenda itself was posted sometime Friday and there is no indication that it meets the 72 hour notice required by Texas law. Stubbs was told another meeting was planned for 6 p.m. Thursday, but as of Tuesday morning there was no notice posted at City Hall for that meeting, so it now cannot legally be held. When a notice is posted, we will notify readers on the Polk County Enterprise’s Facebook page, as well as the print editions of the Polk County Enterprise and the Corrigan Times if adequate notice is provided. If less than 72 hours notice is given, both newspapers will formally object to the meeting being held to the Texas Attorney General’s office and the Polk County District Attorney’s Office