Visiting judge Patrick Pirtle temporarily restored Jason Corley Friday afternoon as Precinct 2 commissioner. An appeal was already filed Friday.
In making his ruling, Pirtle said, “I’m going to order that Jason Corley continue to serve. He is the lawful party holding that office.”
But the judge also acknowledged there might be more work to be done and more hearings to be held.
Corley spoke to media after the hearing.
“We got an election process that has to be followed in this republic. It also has to be defended from time to time. If we don’t respect that, then what do we have? What are we? We’re slowly devolving into an oligarchy or a monarchy or just outright anarchism,” Corley said.
Corley had been out of office since December 2 when County Judge Curtis Parrish declared Corley “automatically” resigned his seat by running for Congress more than one year and 30 days before the end of his term as commissioner. Parrish asked Corley to remove his personal effects from his office in the courthouse. Corley was then escorted out by Sheriff’s deputies.
Roughly two hours later, Parrish administered the oath of office to Mark Meurer of Slaton – naming him Precinct 2 commissioner. Corley filed a lawsuit the same day to get his seat back.
Acting on behalf of the State of Texas, Potter County Attorney Scott Brumley argued Corley never resigned his seat. Brumley argued Parrish had no legal authority to declare the seat vacant or to appoint Meurer as the new commissioner.
Meurer and Parrish did not comment after the court hearing.
Even before Pirtle made his official ruling in court, Meurer’s attorney, Kristen Vander-Plas LaFreniere, filed her notice of appeal.
Why the appeal?
Before getting into the main dispute, Pirtle held a brief hearing on whether the court even had the authority to get involved – based on a technicality.
Corley filed a very specific lawsuit called “quo warranto.” LaFreniere challenged it saying only a district attorney, county attorney or state attorney general can file it. Brumley filed his own version of quo warranto. But LaFrenier claimed that doesn’t solve the problem. Brumley cannot just pick up where Corley left off.
In some sense, the case needs to start over to preserve Meurer’s rights, LaFreniere argued. Pirtle was concerned about a County Commissioners meeting Monday and who would sit in the seat. Pirtle decided to go forward.
“The purpose of quo warranto is … the state acts to protect itself. I think that’s relevant. Mr. Corley is the chosen agent … barring his automatic resignation. The court finds the state has established it will likely succeed,” Pirtle said in his ruling in court.
LaFreniere filed one document electronically during the hearing and then a follow up request a couple hours after the ruling – asking the appeals court to delay Pirtle’s Friday ruling. If that happens, Meurer would sit on the Commissioners Court instead of Corley in the next meeting.
LaFreniere asked the Seventh Circuit of Appeals in Amarillo to take action before 8 a.m. Monday morning.
Click here to read the “motion for temporary relief and stay.”
Timeline:
- November 11: Jodey Arrington, GOP congressman for Texas District 19, announces he wouldn’t seek re-election.
- November 12: Jason Corley announced an exploratory committee for the 19th Congressional District. It included a “Corley for Congress” mailing address, email address and logo. The email and logo were left over from Corley’s run in 2016.
- November 15: Corley sent a private text message saying, “I’m running for Congress.” (Corley argued a private message does not trigger an automatic resignation.)
- December 2: Corley publicly announced his candidacy for Congress one year and 29 days before the end of his term on the Commissioners Court.
- December 3: Corley’s official application was submitted with the Texas Republican Party for the March 3 primary.
- December 8: County Judge Curtis Parrish declared Corley “automatically” resigned when became a candidate “in fact” for Congress with too much time left in his current term as commissioner. Corley disputed the claim.
- December 8: Corley filed a lawsuit to get his seat back – saying in part an exploratory committee is not the same as announcing for office. Corley claimed previous court cases set the boundaries and he did not cross them.
- December 9: State District Judge Les Hatch removed himself from the case. Patrick Pirtle from the 7th Court of Appeals was named as the replacement.
- December 9: LubbockLights.com quoted other commissioners as saying they were stunned by the sudden turn of events.
- December 10: Pirtle denied Corley’s request to immediately declare him the rightful office holder but instead scheduled a hearing for December 19.
- December 15: Pirtle allowed Lubbock County District Attorney Sunshine Stanek to remove her office from the case and appointed Potter County Attorney Scott Brumley to represent the State of Texas.
- December 16: Meurer’s attorney filed a petition to throw the entire case out of court – saying Corley had no right bring the case – only the State of Texas could.
- December 16: Later that same day, Brumley made a written argument in favor of Corley on behalf of the state. It said in part “[Meurer] is unlawfully holding and executing the office of county commissioner.”
- December 19: Pirtle gave a temporary ruling that Corley is the lawful commissioner in Precinct 2.
Corley ‘glad the judge restored the rights’
“Glad that the judge restored the rights of the people of Precinct 2. Seventy-five thousand voters had their voting rights infringed upon,” Corley said.
“Defense of those rights has come at a great personal cost to me. However, it was necessary and it was worth it. … This wasn’t on my bingo card. Yeah, we did not budget for the month of December a $20,000 legal fee,” Corley.
Corley doesn’t know if he can get that money back with a court order after the case is over, but said he plans to find out.
He also said it will not be awkward – at least not for him – sitting next to Parrish on Monday morning.
“It’s just business – business as usual. Just go right back to representing the people of Precinct 2,” Corley said.
This story was published as breaking news and updated later to provide more details.
