PORT ALLEN, La. (AP) - The Port Allen City Council is trying to decide what to do about more than $50,000 in legal fees that former Mayor Demetric “Deedy” Slaughter incurred prior to her recall.
Several councilmen said this week they feel the city should force the ousted mayor to pay for outstanding legal bills the city has been slapped with since Slaughter vacated office.
The Advocate reports (https://bit.ly/1dSdQrn ) the city received a bill of more than $48,000 in November from Baton Rouge law firm Phelps and Dunbar, which represented Slaughter in early court proceedings in a wrongful termination lawsuit filed in February by Chief Financial Officer Audrey McCain.
The city received a bill of more than $48,000 in November from Baton Rouge law firm Phelps and Dunbar, which represented Slaughter in early court proceedings in a wrongful termination lawsuit filed in February by Chief Financial Officer Audrey McCain.
Since Slaughter was successfully recalled from office on Nov. 16, the city also has received another bill from Phelps and Dunbar totaling approximately $3,500, McCain said.
Slaughter shared a contentious relationship with a majority of the City Council during her 11 months as mayor following several controversial decisions. Those included trying to fire McCain and appointing her brother-in-law as her chief of staff.
“They call on a regular basis,” McCain said, referring to bill collectors for Phelps and Dunbar, “but I have no legal authority to pay it. No money has been appropriated in the budget for it. I don’t know what to tell them.”
Should the council decide to pay the bill, McCain said, the city’s 2013-14 budget will have to be amended, including holding a public hearing on the proposed allocation.
Auditors advised the City Council in December that it could force Slaughter to pay the legal bills based on a July 31 ruling from District Judge Alvin Batiste. The ruling prohibited Slaughter from using taxpayers’ money to pay for her legal defense in the multitude of lawsuits filed against her as mayor.
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Information from: The Advocate, https://theadvocate.com
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