Troy still without city attorney
A mayor-selected committee formally
recommended to the Troy City Council its choice for a new city
attorney during last Wednesday’s council meeting but, apparently,
it wasn’t the right pick.
After Mayor Don Banning read off the
committee’s letter in support of Jim Reintsma, city attorney of
Libby, the room went silent.
“Is there a motion to accept the appointment
of James Reintsma as Troy city attorney?” Banning asked.
More silence.
Due to an impasse between mayor and council,
the City of Troy is nearing one month without a city attorney to
prosecute criminal cases and provide legal advice for the city.
City Judge Allen Dye said he is still able to
perform day-to-day business, such as collecting fines, and that
retiring city attorney Mark Fennessy worked on a few criminal cases
this month as a favor.
“But without a prosecutor in place,” Dye said,
“we’re pretty stuck right now.”
The Lincoln County Attorney’s Office is
short-staffed and overwhelmed with cases, so Dye made a call to the
Montana Attorney General’s Office.
The state seemed willing to send a prosecutor
to work in Troy during the interim, Dye said, because officials
don’t want criminal cases to be dismissed.
“At this point, I’m waiting to hear back from
them. It seems pretty positive that they’ll help,” Dye said Friday.
“They’ll probably also have some words for the city council.”
Fennessy told Banning that he has the
authority to hire a lawyer on a case-by-case basis if
necessary.
“I told Don Banning that if issues come up
where they need immediate assistance, he can hire an attorney for
that issue on his own but that’s going to get expensive,” he
said.
Only two applicants – Reintsma and Heather
McDougall – put in for the part-time city attorney position after
Fennessy announced in September his retirement at the end of the
year.
The council believes McDougall’s year of
experience as Libby city attorney and the fact that she resides in
and has a private practice in Troy makes her the clear choice. They
have voiced concern that Reintsma would not give Troy enough
attention since he is Libby’s city attorney and, in addition, has a
private practice in Libby.
Due to McDougall’s belligerent opposition to
Banning since he took office last year, she is not his clear
choice.
The mayor must appoint an attorney with the
consent of the council, so in order to avoid a standoff, Banning
announced at December’s council meeting that he would select an
interview committee to recommend a candidate.
The four-member group interviewed the
candidates, spoke to their references and met with the council last
week on Monday to explain the process and reasoning behind the
committee’s choice. The committee’s letter to Banning stated
several reasons why they believe Reintsma is the best choice.
“He has an in-depth knowledge with more years
of experience as an attorney in the areas of prosecution and civil
litigation,” the letter read. “… He scored higher in all areas of
the performance skills evaluation used as part of the interview
process, (and) he received high recommendations from former
employers with regards to being a good team member.”
The interview committee consisted of Wayne
Maffit, former Troy city judge; Lynn Ward, Troy business owner; Cam
Foote, church pastor with various other community roles; and
Deanise Killingsworth, Troy city court clerk.
His “professional manner,” “sincere
commitment” and willingness to establish regular office hours in
Troy were also mentioned.