MARTINSVILLE, Va. – UPDATE:
Patrick A. Flinn, the Commonwealth’s Attorney of the City of Martinsville, submitted a Notice of Commonwealth’s Review on Tuesday, and found there are “valid grounds” for the petition asking for a recall against Martinsville Mayor L.C. Jones to proceed.
You can read Flinn’s statement below:
Citizens of Martinsville,
Attached to this press release is a Notice of Commonwealth’s Review that I have submitted to the Court. Based on what was provided to me and explained below, I find there are valid grounds for the petition to proceed.
A chief complaint in the petition highlights actions that happened behind closed doors, with attorneys present. I have spoken to, or attempted to contact, at least three separate law firms that currently represent the City of Martinsville. There are several other pending legal matters that involve the City of Martinsville, or individuals involved in this situation. This results in even more attorneys being involved. Essentially, many individuals involved in this situation have “lawyered up.”
My primary goal in reviewing this petition was to find the truth. However, those efforts were frustrated by limited cooperation, or outright refusal to cooperate with my review.
Some individuals did cooperate with my review, to which I am thankful.
I can only review what was provided to me via eyewitness testimony, or documents provided by those who were cooperative.
Regarding any of the allegations in the notice that may be construed as Criminal, I must remind the public of two important points. First, all individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. Second, a Special Prosecutor has already been appointed to handle any criminal investigation and prosecution of any allegations that may be related to this petition.
Patrick A. Flinn, Commonwealth's Attorney for the City of Martinsville
You can see the full statement submitted to the court below:
ORIGINAL STORY:
A group of Martinsville residents have initiated a recall effort against Mayor L.C. Jones, citing concerns over transparency in the investigation of former City Manager Aretha Ferrell-Benavides.
Jones previously abstained from an August vote to release the investigation findings, citing a conflict of interest. A motion to release these documents narrowly failed during an August council meeting.
The petition, led by longtime resident Patti Covington, comes amid mounting tensions over the city’s handling of documents related to the Ferrell-Benavides investigation. “Citizens hope that this process will enable the court to examine the facts and circumstances of the investigation to take any appropriate action,” Covington said.
“We think that there’s just cause that the circuit court judge should take a look,” Covington added. “It’s not an indication of guilt. It’s just an opportunity for the judge to take a look.”
Jones dismissed the accusations, challenging the petition’s legal basis. “They have no evidence. They have no actual facts,” Jones said. “This is just what they believe and they’re hoping that a judge looks at it but that’s not actually how it works.”
The mayor further alleged that signing the petition could be a form of perjury, claiming petitioners have been misled about the petition’s contents.
Covington defended the petition process: “This is a legal right that every tax-paying citizen has, to petition. So, I unfortunately think that he’s trying to keep citizens from signing it.”
Under Virginia law, which doesn’t allow recall elections, the petition requires verified signatures totaling at least 10% of the votes cast in the last mayor’s election (375 in this case). Once collected, the signatures must be certified by the General Registrar before being forwarded to the Commonwealth’s Attorney for legal review. The Commonwealth’s attorney then has an unspecified amount of time to review the legality of the petition before deciding if it should proceed to Circuit Court.
The investigation into the former city manager appears to be reaching a critical phase. Mayor Jones announced last week that the forensic audit of city finances has been completed, but he hasn’t yet received the results of the audit. He says he’s requested the findings and aims to meet with city council to discuss audit findings before January 2nd.
Meanwhile, Councilman Aaron Rawls threatened to hold a press conference revealing details of the investigation if Jones isn’t indicted by early February.