(KAIR)--An Atchison County Commissioner is pushing back against legal action seeking to remove him from office, and his attorney is pointing the finger directly at the county's top law enforcement officer.
Attorneys for Commissioner John Calhoon filed a response Tuesday in Atchison County District Court, alleging that Atchison County Sheriff Jack Laurie is the driving force behind the quo warranto case brought by County Attorney Sherri Becker.
The filing states that a Kansas Open Records Act request produced 96 pages of documents from the county attorney's office — and that most of those pages came from Sheriff Laurie himself, including the legal arguments that formed the basis of the original petition.
Calhoon's legal team says that amounts to the sheriff using the county attorney's office as a political weapon against a perceived enemy.
Becker filed an amended petition last month, dropping Sheriff Laurie's original arguments. Calhoon's attorneys call that move a futile attempt to salvage an unwinnable case.
At the heart of the dispute is whether Calhoon can legally hold two public offices at once, serving as both an Atchison County Commissioner and as Undersheriff for neighboring Jackson County. Calhoon's attorneys deny any conflict exists, arguing the state statute cited by Becker does not apply and that no incompatibility between the two roles has been demonstrated.
The filing also notes that Calhoon was duly elected and later approved by Kansas Governor Laura Kelly and Secretary of State Scott Schwab — and asks the court to dismiss the case entirely.
