The Greene County Commission voted 12 yes and 9 no to abolish the Constable Office in Greene County Tuesday night, but 2/3 of the commission needed to vote yes in order for the resolution to be approved, so the resolution failed and the constable office will not be abolished.
In the January County Commission meeting the majority of the commission voted to abolish the constable office (1st reading), 14-7 with Chase Murray, Jason Cobble, Tim Smithson, Bill Dabbs, Lyle Parton, Larkin Clemmer, and Paul Burkey voting against the abolishment. Two commissioners changed their votes from yes to no since the last meeting, Nick Gunter and Jeffery Bible.
After discussions and weighing out the needs of constables compared to the past, proper training and liability issues was the major concern. But there were almost 700 signatures as of Tuesday evening for a petition against the abolishment and tremendous amount of support in favor of keeping constables since January. Many feel if there were no constables there would be a void in the community.
Before the resolution failed, a motion was made by Commissioner Lyle Parton for a referendum to have residents decide whether or not to keep Greene County Constables, since they are the ones that elected them. According to County Attorney Roger Woolsey, only the county commission is able to make that decision. Woolsey said the public is not allowed to vote on the matter, according to recent laws he was aware of, and said only the state is allowed to issue a referendum.
Commissioner Jason Cobble spoke before commissioners voted on the second reading and reminded all that the community elected not only the commissioners but also the constables. He stated just because the commission has the option to remove the constable office, doesn’t mean its the right thing to do.
