Politics & Government

What's Next for Ellisville and Adam Paul?

The city council will have some decisions to make when they meet on April 17 with three newly elected members.

Update 2: Response from Matt Pirrello added

Update: Clarification added on Paul's eligibility for a special election held as a result of his removal.

With the decision now made to remove Adam Paul from the mayor’s office in Ellisville, the question on the minds of residents is, "What’s next?"

Find out what's happening in Ballwin-Ellisvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

On Monday, Paul’s attorney Chet Pleban said they would have 30 days to file their appeal. Once that happens, the case will move to the St. Louis Circuit Court for what Pleban has portrayed as the real legal battleground.

Meanwhile, the Ellisville City Council will be holding a special meeting at 6:30 p.m. April 12 for "review and adoption of Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law and Judgment relative to removal of Adam Paul," according to the city's website. 

Find out what's happening in Ballwin-Ellisvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

While Paul's defense continues its fight in the courtroom, the newly elected members of Ellisville City Council will also have some decisions to make when they meet for the first time on April 17. Two of three councilman-elect, Michael Cahill and Gary Voss, are strong Paul supporters.

One of their tasks will be appointing a new mayor pro tem, who will serve for one year. The position is currently held until April 17 by councilman and former mayor Matt Pirrello, who himself has come under fire from Paul’s supporters as engineering his ouster.

Pirrello told Patch that he has "zero interest" in filing the position for another year.

Apart from the mayor pro temp, the city’s charter also has stipulations in the event of the removal of the mayor that are causing some confusion.

Pirrello told several media outlets, including Patch, following the conclusion of the hearing Monday that the new council would need to appoint someone as a temporary mayor who would serve for up to one year or until a special election can be held.

The winner of the election would then fill the vacancy for the remainder of Paul's term, which ends in 2015. The date of the election itself is also something that would need to be set by the council and would likely line up with St. Louis County's election schedule.

However, Paul supporters, writing in the comments portion of a previous Patch article, view the Charter as only stipulating that a special election needs to be held and no interim mayor needs to be appointed, since the remainder of Paul's term exceeds a period of one year.  

Section 3.5(c) of the charter is the basis for the speculation and reads as follows:

Any vacancy in the council, whether the Mayor or another council member, shall be filled by the council by a majority vote of all its remaining members for a period running to the next regularly scheduled council election unless such period exceeds one year. In the latter case, the council shall make arrangements for a special election to fill such vacancy for the remainder of the unexpired term. 

However, following the council’s vote on Monday, Pirrello left open the door to the possibility of a political solution. The new council could, in fact, reverse the entire process by overturning the resolution that kicked Paul from office.

“Any resolution can be undone by another resolution from the council,” he said, but added that he wasn't certain about the legality of such a move.

Pirrello has also stated that Paul would be unable to run again himself if a special election is held . Paul's supporters have questioned the legal backing for that statement, but Pirrello said it was his understanding based on state statute. 

While the three new council members have each expressed a desire to work together with their compatriots and city staff to move forward, it’s clear that they will be forced to confront the controversy created by Paul’s removal from day one. 

Read Patch's previous coverage of the Adam Paul impeachment:

  • Ellisville Council Ousts Mayor from Office
  • Decision Day in Ellisville: Vote on Adam Paul is Tonight
  • Who Are the Winners and Losers From Ellisville Impeachment Hearing?


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