Hamilton County board hires outside counsel, approves $59 million bond consolidation and multiple consent items

At its Oct. 2 meeting, the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners approved resolutions to hire outside legal counsel for the prosecutor’s office, consolidated bond financing tied to the county’s Central Campus acquisition, and a consent agenda of administrative items.

The board voted unanimously to retain outside counsel at the prosecutor’s recommendation to avoid conflicts in two matters. The first firm, Schroeder Mondrell Barbier & Powers, was hired to investigate employment-related claims at the River City Correctional Center; the administration said the firm’s top hourly rate is $250 and it provided a not-to-exceed estimate of $10,000 for that matter. The second outside firm, Montgomery Johnson (listed on the agenda as recommended by the prosecutor), will assist in a case involving repeated filings by a litigant the prosecutor seeks to have declared a vexatious litigator; county staff estimated those services would cost roughly $5,000 and no more than $10,000.

County Administrator Jeff Aluto presented those items and said both firms were recommended to avoid conflicts of interest inside the prosecutor’s office. The motions to approve both by-leave resolutions passed with all three commissioners voting yes.

Votes at a glance: - Employment of Schroeder Mondrell Barbier & Powers as special legal counsel for an employment matter related to River City Correctional Center: approved; hourly top rate $250; estimated cap $10,000; vote: Denise Driehaus — yes; Stephanie Summer O'Dumas — yes; Alicia Reese — yes. - Employment of Montgomery Johnson as special legal counsel related to litigation involving filings against Judge Goring: approved; estimated $5,000–$10,000; vote: Denise Driehaus — yes; Stephanie Summer O'Dumas — yes; Alicia Reese — yes.

The board also approved a consent agenda that included a series of financial, administrative and personnel items: - Appointment of Christian Gonzales to the Port Authority to replace Angelita Moreno Jones: approved. - Bond issuance and reimbursement resolutions connected to Hamilton County Central Campus acquisition and renovation: agenda items listed amounts of $52,500,000 and $6,500,000 and included a consolidation resolution for $59,000,000; approved as part of the consent agenda. - A budget adjustment totaling $7,280,000 covering multiple line items and federal entitlement grants: approved. - A transfer of $1,400,000 for inmate medical at the juvenile correction center from the children services levy to the indigent care levy: approved. - Job & Family Services contract items totaling approximately $1,500,000, including a memorandum of understanding to fund guardian ad litem services ($844,255) and an amendment for group home services with Step Hire Nella’s Place ($661,000): approved. - Other routine items approved included correspondence on vacation of multiple road/alleyways, steady federal grant appropriations for community development, an HVAC repair invoice for $6,270, a travel request for a coroner’s office employee to West Palm Beach, Florida, and a zoning-map amendment related to the Mike’s Car Wash matter (Green Case 2025-02).

Why it matters: approving outside counsel preserves the prosecutor’s ability to pursue cases where internal conflicts could arise; the bond and budget resolutions set short-term financing and appropriation steps tied to the county’s acquisition and renovation projects.

Meeting procedure: Commissioner Denise Driehaus moved approval of the by-leave resolutions; another commissioner seconded and roll-call votes recorded unanimous approval. The consent agenda (items 1–13) was approved by voice vote with all commissioners recorded as yes.