Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the County Attorney Reappointment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Hammond County reappoints Chris Capps as county attorney amid billing concerns
Summary
The Hammond County Commission confirmed Chris Capps to a one-year term as county attorney after receiving a letter from Capps; public commenters and at least one commissioner raised concerns about past billing practices and asked that the attorney appear at the next meeting to address invoice details.
The Hammond County Commission on Sept. 18 confirmed Chris Capps to a one-year term as county attorney after receiving a written acknowledgment from Capps in his absence. The confirmation came by roll call vote after a commissioner nominated Capps and no other nominations were made.
The reappointment drew public criticism during the meeting. Gwendolyn Holden, a resident who said she lives at 8150 West Point Drive, urged commissioners not to reappoint Capps, saying his continued service would signal approval of past billing practices. "If you again appoint Chris Capps, it shows us, all of us taxpayers, that you approve of a county attorney who bills the taxpayers twice for attending county commission meetings," Holden said during the agenda-comments portion of the meeting.
Commissioner Edna Green also raised concerns tied to litigation and billing, saying an extended legal matter had involved alleged "double dipping." "Mister Katz has been under lawsuit for 4 years for for pricing. In other words, double dipping," Green said during comments after the vote, and she asked for an attorney with "ethical standards" to advise the commission.
Mayor Cutshall told the commission that Capps could not attend the meeting because of a family appointment but had sent a letter indicating he intended to serve. The commission proceeded with a roll call confirmation. The clerk recorded the confirmation as passing and the mayor announced Capps confirmed to the post for the coming year.
Following public comment, commissioners asked that the county attorney appear at the next commission meeting to address specific invoice items and to provide the caption for pending litigation referenced in the consent-calendar invoices. Commissioner Green explicitly asked for the attorney to provide that caption at the next meeting; the mayor and other commissioners agreed to add the item to the next agenda.
No change to the confirmation vote was recorded at the meeting; the appointment stands pending any administrative follow-up.
The commission did not take additional formal disciplinary or investigatory action during the session; concerns were recorded in public comment and members directed staff to request the county attorney attend the next meeting to respond to questions about invoices and litigation captions.
