A judge from outside Hinds County is needed to hear Joyce Jackson’s contest of her loss in the special Ward 3 Jackson City Council race.
All four Hinds County Circuit Court judges have stepped aside from hearing the case, with only one, Judge Jeff Weill Sr., giving a reason.
That leaves the case in the hands of the Mississippi Supreme Court, which could appoint a sitting judge from another district or a retired judge to hear the case.
Jackson filed her complaint March 2, three days after LaRita Cooper-Stokes bested her by 156 votes in a runoff for the vacant seat formerly held for years by Cooper-Stokes’ husband, Kenneth Stokes, now a Hinds County supervisor.
Jackson contends poll workers at several precincts assisted voters illegally and in some cases coached them to vote for Cooper-Stokes. She says election officials also allowed Cooper-Stokes’ supporters to campaign within 150 feet of the building in violation of election laws.
Cooper-Stokes responded to the complaint by asking the court to dismiss it with prejudice, meaning Jackson wouldn’t be able to bring it up again. Cooper-Stokes was sworn in March 2.
Subsequently, the four judges one by one filed orders to recuse themselves.
Weill, a former city councilman, wrote that he has a busy docket and suggested another courtroom would be a better fit, given the time-sensitive nature of the case.
Judge William Gowan’s order indicated he could have a conflict of interest, but he did not elaborate.
Gowan and fellow Judges Tomie Green and Winston Kidd did not return calls this week seeking comment.
Beverly Kraft, a court system spokeswoman, said the Supreme Court received the recusals on Friday. She could not predict how long it would take to appoint a replacement judge but added, “They usually move pretty quickly on that.”
Jackson’s attorney, John Reeves, said he expects a judge to be appointed within a matter of days.
When the Supreme Court appoints a senior status judge (retired) as a special judge to hear a case in which local judges have recused themselves, the senior status judge is paid from the state trial judges’ budget. If the court appoints a sitting judge from another district, that judge receives only travel expenses.
Barring any appeals, “it (the trial) should be over within the next month,” Reeves said. If a judge rules in Jackson’s favor, another election could be held as early as May, leaving the winner with a term of just more than a year.
Citywide elections are in June 2013.
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