Randolph County BOE Apr 17 Court King 1

To no one's suprise, Jenkins and Cook filed separate lawsuits against three board members, Smith et al (Don Smith, Tom Mock, Dymple McDonald). Judge Chasen presides over a hearing. These 5 videos present the bulk of and the substance of the proceedings, which are summarized here. Cook's suit is presented by attorney Maurice Luther King. He argues that the temporary restraining order should remain in place because there has been no response to the verified pleading. The law that made the term of the Chair 4 years long was pre-cleared by the Justice Department in 1988. It is controversial whether the new law requires pre-clearance; it is under review by the Justice Department. If it does require pre-clearance, it cannot be enforced until it is. The new law reconstituting the Randolph BOE is unconstitutional because it changes the term while the person is in office. That is punishment without trial, and violates the equal protection clause, because it only applies to Cook. There was a similar case in Baker County in 2008 where the predominantly white board acted after the election, changing the chair and contracting with the attorney and Supt. The difference was that in Randolph, the new law was passed by the General Assembly, reconstituting the board. The November 19 [sic] called meeting was not a valid meeting, it had been cancelled, and the board had not posted an agenda re electing a chair. Cook chaired the April 6 meeting. Mock was elected Chair at an illegal meeting March 19.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Randolph County BOE
• Randolph County
• Cuthbert
• Georgia
• school board
• Bobby Jenkins
• Henry Cook
• Maurice Luther King
• Tommy Coleman