My pledge to the citizens of Fayette County is that I will not waste your tax dollars. As you read in last Wednesday’s edition of The Citizen, Chairman Greg Dunn spent $226,000 over the last three years in lawsuits involving the County Commission and the Sheriff’s Office. The total legal fees for Fayette County are over $1.4 million. Chairman Dunn has wasted your tax dollars on filing and fighting frivolous lawsuits.

As many of you know, I recently published an advertisement in this newspaper listing the failed lawsuits that are the responsibility of the current Chairman of the Fayette County Commission. Below I republish the body of the advertisement.

• Chairman Greg Dunn v. Sheriff Johnson (Seized Drug Money)

• Chairman Greg Dunn v. Sheriff Johnson (Marshal’s Office)

• Chairman Greg Dunn v. Fayetteville (Annexation)

• Chairman Greg Dunn v. Tyrone (Sewer with Fairburn)

• Chairman Greg Dunn v. Eric Maxwell (Political Signs)

I have received information from the county manager’s office showing the increase in the legal fees that the county has incurred over the last few years. Below I have reproduced the actual expenditure for the fiscal years 2000 through the current year.

Fayette County Board of Commissioners

LEGAL FEES

Fiscal Year Year-to-date

2000 $238,668

2001 $288,293*

2002 $342,854

2003 $362,374

2004 $402,972

2005 $502,647

2006 $534,566 **

* Fayette County Commission appoints Greg Dunn Chairman

** This figure is for July 2005-April 2006

A review of the legal fees shows that under Chairman Dunn’s leadership the legal fees have more than doubled in the five years that he has been chairman.

Where has this money been spent? The money was squandered on suing and losing unwinnable cases against Sheriff Johnson, the city of Fayetteville and the town of Tyrone.

Had Chairman Dunn prevailed in any of these lawsuits, he might have been justified in fighting the fight. As an attorney, we are trained to evaluate the case before ever filing a lawsuit. A client is not served well if after the litigation has begun it is discovered that the case is not winnable.

Can you afford to keep paying for Commissioner Dunn’s frivolous lawsuits?

If you agree that it is TIME FOR A CHANGE and want to stop the wasteful spending, please contact me for a yard sign at 770-375-5654, or if you wish to speak with me personally, please call me at 678-520-0583. I humbly request your vote on July 18.

login to post comments