Council approves $323,600 in legal fees for sheriff

Columbus Council approved an amendment to last year’s city budget this morning to reflect the payment of about $323,600 in legal fees for lawyers representing Sheriff John Darr in his lawsuit against the city and its leadership.

In late 2014, Darr filed his lawsuit against the city, members of Columbus Council and several of its top executives, including Mayor Teresa Tomlinson City Manager Isaiah Hugley and City Attorney Clifton Fay, claiming that the city does not provide sufficient funds for him to carry out his legal obligations and that the city’s budget process violates the city charter.

Superior Court Clerk Linda Pierce, Marshal Greg Countryman and Municipal Court Clerk Vivian Creighton Bishop filed similar suits at about the same time. Pierce filed a separate suit while Countryman and Bishop filed a joint lawsuit.

The Countryman-Creighton Bishop suit and Pierce’s suit are currently in Superior Court in the discovery phase, after having been to the State Court of appeals and State Supreme Court, respectively, on unsuccessful attempts by the city to have them dismissed. What remains of Darr’s case is also in Superior Court, but the majority of it was recently dismissed by Superior Court Judge Philip Raymond.

Darr’s attorneys have yet to announce whether they will appeal Raymond’s ruling.

Because they are constitutional officers, the city must pay legal fees for Pierce and Darr, but Countryman and Bishop are not constitutional officers, so the city is not responsible for their fees.

To date, the city has paid almost $2.8 million in legal fees in the lawsuits.

This story was originally published August 9, 2016 at 9:53 AM with the headline "Council approves $323,600 in legal fees for sheriff."