Supreme Court ruled Cathlamet recall charges are insufficient

Today, the Washington Supreme Court announced its opinion in the appeal of the recall charges against Cathlamet's mayor and three council member; the court upheld the ruling of Wahkiakum Superior Court Judge Donald J. Richter that the recall charges were insufficient.

Following is the opening of the state court's opinion, written by Justice Susan Owens:

"This case concerns a recall petition filed against the mayor and three members of the town council of Cathlamet. All of the charges against the councillors and most of the charges against the mayor pertain to Cathlamet's purchase of a parcel of real property. The remaining charges against the mayor pertain to his use of separate town-owned lots to park his personal business vehicles. We hold that the charges pertaining to Cathlamet's property purchase are legally insufficient because acquisition of real property is a fundamental government purpose and a discretionary act that was not manifestly unreasonable in this instance. We hold that

the charges pertaining to the mayor's use of town-owned lots are also legally insufficient because the mayor's alleged conduct was not substantial. Accordingly, we affirm the superior court"

The supreme court justices voted 6-3 in making their decision.

The opinion, including the statement of the dissenting justices, may be found online at https://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/index.cfm?fa=opinions.recent.