Laclede Water director ousted in lopsided recall

SANDPOINT — A member of the Laclede Water District’s board of directors was ousted from office Tuesday in a landslide recall election.

District patrons voted 114-10 to relieve Harvey Hallenbeck of his position on the board. However, a civil proceeding is still pending in 1st District Court which could unwind the recall.

The final tally remains unofficial until Sept. 3, when the vote is canvassed, Bonner County Deputy Clerk Charlie Wurm said on Tuesday night.

The recall initiative was launched in May, after Hallenbeck declined a fellow board member’s request that he resign after clashing with his colleagues and a determined group of district watchdogs.

Counsel for Hallenbeck sued Bonner County earlier this month in attempt to halt the election, but the court allowed it to continue while the civil proceeding makes its way through 1st District Court.

The county said on May 30 that the recall’s backers had secured signatures from 20 percent of the district’s electorate, enough to trigger Tuesday’s recall.

Hallenbeck’s Sandpoint attorney, H. Tom Vanderford, filed for injunctive relief on Aug. 11, arguing that recall backers needed signatures from 50 percent of the district’s voters because the district held an election in 2010.

Vanderford contended that election’s results were turned over to the county, but county officials said they did not possess the records and the district was unable to prove the election was held.

Vanderford moved on Aug. 13 for an order to stop the election, but Judge John T. Mitchell declined the request. Mitchell found that the county had not been given notice of the proposed order, court documents indicate.

Mitchell also noted that the plaintiffs did not explain why they waited from May 30 to Aug. 11 to challenge the call for an election.

Hallenbeck filed an affidavit stating he didn’t receive notice from the county of the recall until mid-June because it was addressed to the board of directors. And it wasn’t until mid-July that the board determined not to use district resources to challenge the recall, Hallenbeck said in the affidavit.

Vanderford moved for Mitchell to reconsider his ruling, but the motion is still pending.

Bonner County Deputy Prosecutor Scott Bauer, the county’s civil counsel, has said if Hallenbeck manages to prevail in his civil action, the recall could be nullified.

If the recall is ultimately deemed lawful, Hallenbeck will be the third director to leave office or be forced from it in the past two years.

Gerald “Jerry” Doyle resigned from the board in July as part of mediated settlement to resolve a misdemeanor corruption charge against him for hiring his stepson as a plant operator. Randal McLain resigned from office last year after being targeted in a prior recall attempt.