Page County attorney Carl Songerson resigns to join attorney general's office; board discusses transition

Carl Songerson, Page County attorney, submitted his resignation on Jan. 22 and will remain with the office through Feb. 12, he and the board said at the meeting.

Songerson told the board the position arose unexpectedly and he could not pass up the opportunity. “It’s an opportunity that came up that I didn’t expect to come up and really couldn’t pass up,” he said. “I’ve been in the county attorney’s office 17 years, and that 17 years happened awfully quickly.” He offered to help with the transition.

Songerson warned the board that many filings are done under his license and that, once he leaves, the office staff would be unable to file documents or, in some cases, view filings on the county’s EDMS system unless someone is in place to fill that role immediately. “So we’ll need to have somebody in there, to fill that in,” Songerson said, noting time-sensitive criminal filings could require action within four or five days.

Board members discussed asking Jim Barley to serve on an interim basis while the county conducts a search for a permanent replacement. The board chair said they would talk with Barley after he returned to town; Barley had previously sent a letter to the board indicating availability. One commissioner said Barley had “just retired” and that his credentials were fine if he was willing to serve.

The board asked Songerson to help draft a job description to post the vacancy; the chair said the posting would go up immediately. One exchange referenced a separate advertised position described as “Jim’s job” that had been open for about three months with one application received; the transcript did not specify which prior position that line referenced.

No formal vote to accept the resignation was recorded in the transcript; the board discussed next steps for interim coverage and recruiting.

The board thanked Songerson for his service and wished him well for his new role.