The Cochise County supervisors decided to hire a lawyer just two hours before a court hearing over their decision not to certify the election results.
At the end of an emergency meeting, the county administrator was given the go-ahead to contract with the McCauley Law Offices.
Democrat supervisor Ann English voted against the action because it was too late to find a lawyer who was familiar with the case.
She said hiring a lawyer so late would only allow a lawyer to go to court and ask for a delay, which she said was not in the county's best interest.
GOP supervisors approved the hire. They didn't have much to say about English's statements.
I can't say anything. Judd said it hurts. Yes, but. I'm okay with it. It is better than not doing anything. I'm sorry. We tried to figure that out when Mr. Blehm wasn't around.
Even though they had not discussed the matter with the attorney, the supervisors voted to hire him to defend them. They were caught off guard when Blehm declined the offer, as well as another attorney he had recommended.
A judge is expected to rule on requests from the Secretary of State and a retiree group to order the board to certify election results. It was due Monday. The board voted to delay a decision until the last week of the month.
English dissented from the motion to delay and said she would be in court as a result. Judd and Crosby agreed to delay the meeting until Friday.
Ex-prosecutors recommend that Cochise County supervisors be charged with disorderly conduct.
English said that he would like to have an attorney to represent the county. She told the administrators to ask Crosby and Judd for more advice since they have chosen to ignore state law.
$25,000 in damages was sought by the county for the board's failure to certify. Paul Sivertsen, a Cochise County resident, said that the board's failure to certify dismissed his vote and prevented him from voting.
The county's 47,000 votes will not be counted if Cochise doesn't submit its certification in time. That could be avoided if a court order was issued.
He believes monetary fines are the only way to prevent future anti-democratic and unlawful maneuvers.
The claim could be the beginning of a class-action lawsuit, according to him.
The lawsuits brought by the Arizona Alliance of Retired Americans will be heard by a Pima County judge.
The proceedings will take place in Cochise County. The hearing may be streamed.
The reporter can be reached at maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com and she can also be reached on social media.
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The article was originally published on the Arizona Republic.
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