Independence Township Supervisor Dave Wagner is taking efforts to stop the recall effort to the next level.
Wagner’s attorney Larry Barnett filed a complaint with the Oakland County Circuit Court on July 29 against the election commission.
The complaint consisted of two different counts. Count I: ‘Erroneous Determination Claim? and County II: ‘Unconstitutionality of statute claim. On Feb. 4 Barnett filed an amended complaint to include a third count ‘recall petition was not based on plaintiff’s officer’s (Wagner) conduct during his current term of office.
‘If the law was unconstitutional, which is what they’re arguing why was it constitutional when the first two times when the board ruled in their favor, but it wasn’t constitutional the third time it ruled in ours,? asked Citizens Against Independence Township Waste member Henry Woloson.
The commission voted 3-0, Jan. 21, to approve petition language calling for Wagner’s recall due to bonus payments made to an employee, car allowance increases, and money spent on architectural work for a new police substation.
Wagner said the language submitted by CAITW was ‘very clear.?
‘Even though it is misleading all they have to do is have clarity, so I don’t have a problem with their language, believe it or not,? Wagner said. ‘I completely disagree with what they’re doing, but where they’re falling apart and where that petition is wrong is that it was actions taken by a prior board.?
Joellen Shortley Blaszczak, department of corporate counsel, represents the commission. She filed a motion for the complaint to be dismissed, on May 5.
‘We haven’t gotten a notice yet on the initial complaint,? she said. ‘So, it’s possible there could be a hearing on that before the motion to be dismissed.?
Though there are three complaints, Blaszczak said she plans on focusing on ‘whether the language is clear.?
Wagner said he plans to present paperwork to the judge to show the actions were done by a previous board.
‘If the judge looks at all the evidence and finds even one of them is true, the whole petition is thrown out and the recall is dismissed,? he said. ‘That’s what we’re going to court for.?