Cd'A to county: Withdraw the lawsuit

The City of Coeur d’Alene is telling the county to back off from its decision to sue the city.

In a letter sent Wednesday to Kootenai County Prosecutor Barry McHugh and Civil Deputy Prosecutor R. David Ferguson, Coeur d’Alene Deputy City Attorney Warren Wilson urges the prosecutors to reconsider their decision to mount a legal challenge against the city and the targets of an ongoing recall initiative -- Mayor Sandi Bloem and council members Mike Kennedy, Woody McEvers and Deanna Goodlander.

Wilson alleges Kootenai County Clerk Cliff Hayes has violated Idaho code by acting against the guidance of state officials regarding the timeline for petition signatures to be collected by those pursuing the recall, and then validated by his office.

The lawsuit was filed in district court earlier this week by McHugh and Ferguson on behalf of the plaintiff, Clerk Hayes.

“Unfortunately, Mr. Hayes has not followed the instructions from the Secretary of State’s office. Instead a suit has been filed against the City of Coeur d’Alene and four of its elected officials challenging the interpretation contained in Mr. Hurst’s instructions. Mr. Hayes continues to disregard this instruction as a ‘city opinion’ and continues to insert himself into a process that, by statute, is to be administered by the City Clerk,” Wilson wrote.

Wilson goes on to request that the prosecutor’s office investigate Hayes’ alleged violation, and also claims that by filing the lawsuit, it appears McHugh’s office has “taken sides in the recall petition drive,” and created an impression that the city and the four elected officials have done something illegal or unethical.

A copy of the letter from Wilson to McHugh, and the letter from Hurst can be downloaded from this page.