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Resident urges Washington County to correct public‑record statements, cites jury‑trial records
Summary
During public comment, Frank Schwartz asked commissioners to acknowledge and correct statements he says were factually wrong about 20‑acre splits and felony jury convictions, and he criticized executive‑session use in a recent item; the Board did not provide an on‑the‑spot correction.
Frank Schwartz used the public comment period at the May 11 Washington County Commissioners meeting to ask the Board to address what he described as inconsistent and inaccurate official statements about parcel splits and jury trials.
Schwartz said he submitted a letter and supporting public records on April 19 pointing to differences between comments made by Prosecuting Attorney True Pearce on April 13 and statements from 2025 by Commissioner Gordon Wilkerson about 20‑acre splits. He also said meeting minutes and court records show felony jury convictions in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2023 and 2024 — contradicting a prior published claim that there had been no jury felony convictions in over a decade. "The citizens of Washington County have a right to know about the inaccurate statements by elected officials," Schwartz said, and asked that incorrect statements on the official record be corrected.
Schwartz further questioned why a May 4 executive session about the Thousands Springs development occurred in private and whether that practice reduced transparency or created conflicts of interest in future litigation. He urged the board to be "transparent, honest and trustworthy" and to correct misinformation.
No formal correction or immediate staff response was recorded during Schwartz’s comment. The item remains a public‑record complaint that the Board may address through correspondence or future agenda items.
