Council denies appeal of mobile sales unit license for Dalton White

The Meridian City Council denied an appeal of a mobile sales unit license for Dalton White on July 21, upholding staff’s determination that a prior adjudication disqualifies him under city code. Bill Neri, the staff presenter, told council the city ordinance prohibits issuance of the license for offenses of this type and that the code contains no time limit or discretion to make an exception.

At the hearing White said he accepted a plea that resulted in adjudicated probation in another state and said he believed that disposition was not a conviction there. “I was under heavy advisement by my lawyer at the time...it’s a decision I live with every day,” White said in addressing the council. He told council he has steady employment and asked for an exception so he could operate a mobile sales unit.

Staff responded that, regardless of out-of-state practice, Meridian’s code treats the offense as disqualifying. Councilman Overton restated staff’s reading of the ordinance and moved to deny the appeal, citing the code’s lack of an exception. Council members expressed sympathy but agreed the council lacked authority to waive the disqualification. The council voted to deny the appeal; the mayor stated, “The ayes have it,” sustaining the denial.

The action was procedural and left unchanged the underlying code language; council discussion did not include an amendment to the ordinance. The denial preserves the city’s current licensing standard while highlighting a council awareness of differences in out-of-state adjudication practices.