Earle recalls Jones

Earle recalls Jones

City gives mayor a vote of no- confidence

news@theeveningtimes.com

Carolyn Jones’s stormy term in office as Mayor of Earle has come to an abrupt end.

Jones was recalled by the electorate 522-239 and now voters will have to return to the polls for another election to decide who will take her place.

Jones defeated incumbent Otis Davis in a runoff election in 2014 to become the first female mayor, but her term was marked by personal strife and numerous controversies, and she now leaves as the first mayor in that city to ever be recalled. “She made history twice,” said former Mayor Sherman Smith. “She was the first woman elected as mayor and the first to be recalled.”

The recall was started by resident Early May Wallace who gathered over 500 signatures to force the recall.

Wallace started the petition because all of the controversies caused by Jones.

“There is so much going on it’s pitiful,” Wallace told The Evening Times in July.

“People are tired of her.”

Jones started off by making headlines her first day in office by getting the city sued for replacing four white officers with four black officers.

One of the new hires was later arrested by State Police on drug charges and for impersonating a police officer, kidnapping, and robbery. Another officer posted comments on Facebook threatening to take “one or five lives” to clean up the streets of Earle. Jones maintained that it was former chief Tyrone Smith who fired the officers, not her.

Jones later fired Smith, who also sued the city for wrongful termination.

Jones suspended Smith for 30 days pending the outcome of harassment charges stemming from an incident in Parkin. Those charges were later dismissed. Smith claimed Jones knew about the charges and fired him because

he fired John Couch,

who is now the current chief, for sleeping on the job.

Jones got the city banned from applying for federal Justice Assistance Grants for two years as a result of her driving a car intended to be used as a police car which was paid for with federal money.

The city also got in to hot water with Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality for illegally dumping demolition material after the city tore down a house on Commerce Street and hauled the debris off to the old compress on Alabama Street. Jones contended that she did not even know the city had a dump at the old compress, and that it was her who talked the state Environmental Protection Agency out of fining the city $10,000.

Jones also got caught using gravel given to the city by the county for her own driveway — a claim she adamantly denied.

Her relations with the city council were also strained.

Jones on numerous occasions gaveled Councilman Kenneth Cross out of order and tried to have police remove him from a meeting, which was stopped by a Crittenden County Sheriff’s deputy.

Jones also enacted a controversial new policy requiring

residents to sign in

at city hall stating their business, and pushed the council to buy her a city vehicle to drive. The city spent $13,000 on a car which she was later forced to park after it was spotted at Southland Gaming and Racing numerous occasions after hours.

The city’s finances also declined under her administration. The city had to dip into a certificate of deposit and withdraw $50,000 for a second time to pay its bills.

Jones claimed the city was broke when she took over and that she only started with $35,000 in the bank.

As a result of all the lawsuits during her administration, Arkansas Municipal League recently informed the city that its fees for legal defense for 2017 will jump to $14,500 a year — up from $6,051.

Jones, for her part, claimed that the council was quick to assign blame to her for all of the city’s problems and that they would not work with her.

“When I first took office all of my councilmembers promised to work with me,” Jones said. “They worked with me all right.

They tried to work me right out the door. For two years I took the blame thinking they would help me out.

But they didn’t.”

Jones did make progress in some areas.

She replaced the city’s rusted street signs, patched potholes, and replaced or fixed much of the city’s equipment which had been poorly maintained.

Jones was left to pay for several high dollar repairs .

The air conditioning broke at city hall and the revenue office, the mosquito sprayer was broken, and tractors were damaged and not in working condition when she took office.

Jones, who was not present when the votes were counted, remained defiant to the end.

“I’ve been accused of everything excepting killing Jesus,” Jones said at the September council meeting. “I’m not taking any more blame.”

With the recall, the mayor’s office will now officially be declared vacant.

The city council will appoint an interim mayor until a new election can be held.

Former Mayor Otis Davis, who Jones blamed for much of her troubles, said he was pleased with the outcome, but has no plans to try and run for the office again.

“I think the people made the right choice,” Davis said. “But she did a lot of damage.”

By Mark Randall