FAST FACTS:
(Memphis 9/14/2009) City Attorney Elbert Jefferson should be drinking lots of juice.
He needs his sleep, Elbert does. And if you have any aspirin, toss a few Elbert's way, would you? He was supposed to meet last week with Mayor Pro-Tem Myron Lowery, but Jefferson called in sick all of last week. He has 92 sick days remaining for the year. That's right, 92 sick days remaining. Now you know why he might not want to leave office.
But Elbert Jefferson might not have any choice. He is under investigation by the F-B-I for agreeing to pay local attorney Robert Spence $55, 000.
Here's the story. Former Mayor Willie Herenton is under investigation by the F-B-I as well. Last year, he hired Spence for legal advice. He got $55-thousand dollars of it. But taxpayer money can only be used to pay legal fees concerning city business, and Spence said his work for former Mayor Herenton wasn't city business. Now it's the F-B-I's business.
Jefferson is a symbol of the deep divisions that exist in Memphis City Government these days. He was appointed to the job by Herenton, and in fact, last June, Herenton refused to accept Jefferson's resignation. Now he won't leave.
City council members are split on this issue. Councilman Joe Brown says Mayor Pro-Tem Myron Lowery is supposed to decide whether he wants to fire Jefferson, and then let the council vote...not the other way around. Shea Flinn says forget about the Spence payoff. He's upset that Jefferson never bothered to tell anybody that he was under investigation by the F-B-I. Councilman Bill Morrison is sponsoring a resolution to fire Jefferson. Kemp Conrad is leaning toward voting in favor of Morrison's plan. Bill Boyd says he feels the same way. Janis Fullilove, Wanda Halbert and Edmund Ford, Jr say they need more information before deciding.
Former Mayor Willie Herenton says the whole fight is nothing but politics at its worst. "There is nothing out of the ordinary about those fees being paid," Herenton said last week. "This investigation is not about Willie Herenton. It's about Mayor Willie Herenton.
Jefferson wanted to see all the questions from council members before meeting with them, but chairman Harold Collins says it's not going to happen. Collins, who wants to hear the testimony before making up his mind says, "I found out we've never done that before with anybody. We will stay within the context of the council rules and the procedures and that's how we will act."
Once again, the entire investigation into the city legal department fees has opened up the issue of race. Last week, Mayor Lowery not only was upset over Jefferson, but he fired lawyer Ricky Wilkins from doing any city work. Wilkins had billed the city more than $2-million dollars over the last several years. Collins says he's getting phone calls from some of the people he represents saying, "They are concerned about why the African-American lawyers are being singled out. They're concerned about why it has to be a public spectacle."
The meeting will be Tuesday September 15th at 3:30pm.
- Mayor Pro-Tem tried to fire City Attorney Elbert Jefferson in July
- Court ruled Mayor didn't follow proper procedure
- Jefferson called in sick all of last week but still has 92 sick days
(Memphis 9/14/2009) City Attorney Elbert Jefferson should be drinking lots of juice.
He needs his sleep, Elbert does. And if you have any aspirin, toss a few Elbert's way, would you? He was supposed to meet last week with Mayor Pro-Tem Myron Lowery, but Jefferson called in sick all of last week. He has 92 sick days remaining for the year. That's right, 92 sick days remaining. Now you know why he might not want to leave office.
But Elbert Jefferson might not have any choice. He is under investigation by the F-B-I for agreeing to pay local attorney Robert Spence $55, 000.
Here's the story. Former Mayor Willie Herenton is under investigation by the F-B-I as well. Last year, he hired Spence for legal advice. He got $55-thousand dollars of it. But taxpayer money can only be used to pay legal fees concerning city business, and Spence said his work for former Mayor Herenton wasn't city business. Now it's the F-B-I's business.
Jefferson is a symbol of the deep divisions that exist in Memphis City Government these days. He was appointed to the job by Herenton, and in fact, last June, Herenton refused to accept Jefferson's resignation. Now he won't leave.
City council members are split on this issue. Councilman Joe Brown says Mayor Pro-Tem Myron Lowery is supposed to decide whether he wants to fire Jefferson, and then let the council vote...not the other way around. Shea Flinn says forget about the Spence payoff. He's upset that Jefferson never bothered to tell anybody that he was under investigation by the F-B-I. Councilman Bill Morrison is sponsoring a resolution to fire Jefferson. Kemp Conrad is leaning toward voting in favor of Morrison's plan. Bill Boyd says he feels the same way. Janis Fullilove, Wanda Halbert and Edmund Ford, Jr say they need more information before deciding.
Former Mayor Willie Herenton says the whole fight is nothing but politics at its worst. "There is nothing out of the ordinary about those fees being paid," Herenton said last week. "This investigation is not about Willie Herenton. It's about Mayor Willie Herenton.
Jefferson wanted to see all the questions from council members before meeting with them, but chairman Harold Collins says it's not going to happen. Collins, who wants to hear the testimony before making up his mind says, "I found out we've never done that before with anybody. We will stay within the context of the council rules and the procedures and that's how we will act."
Once again, the entire investigation into the city legal department fees has opened up the issue of race. Last week, Mayor Lowery not only was upset over Jefferson, but he fired lawyer Ricky Wilkins from doing any city work. Wilkins had billed the city more than $2-million dollars over the last several years. Collins says he's getting phone calls from some of the people he represents saying, "They are concerned about why the African-American lawyers are being singled out. They're concerned about why it has to be a public spectacle."
The meeting will be Tuesday September 15th at 3:30pm.
