Four members of the five-person panel that will investigate the ethics complaint against embattled Gwinnett County Commissioner Tommy Hunter have now been chosen.
The only appointment left to be made will come from Hunter himself.
A Gwinnett County spokesman confirmed Thursday that the Association of County Commissioners of Georgia had chosen to appoint Fayette County Commissioner Charles Rousseau to the ethics board, which is not a standing body and is designed to be assembled each time a complaint is filed. The complaint is the first one filed under Gwinnett’s 2011 ethics ordinance, which established procedures for the ethics board.
Rousseau is a longtime Fayette County resident and served on various community boards before becoming a commissioner in 2015. He was elected in September of that year to fill the unexpired term of Commissioner Pota Coston, who had died after a months-long battle with cancer.
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Local attorneys Helen Kim Ho and Christine Koehler filed the ethics complaint against Hunter on Feb. 6, on behalf of Atlanta resident Nancie Turner. The complaint alleges that — with his now infamous Facebook post calling U.S. Rep. John Lewis a "racist pig" — Hunter violated several sections of Gwinnett's ethics ordinance.
The ordinance is primarily meant to target shady land deals and other corruption, but one of section urges elected officials and county employees to “never engage in conduct which is unbecoming to a member or which constitutes a breach of public trust.”
The ethics ordinance, which applies to all county employees, technically gives the ethics board the power to recommend penalties ranging from written reprimand to removal from office. But state law makes it very difficult to oust remove elected officials unless a criminal offense is involved.
The ordinance — which Hunter's spokesman, Seth Weathers, has called "entirely unconstitutional" — calls for four different organizations, as well as the subject of the complaint, to make appointments to the board.
The Board of Commissioners made its appointment to the ethics board last week, selecting longtime community leader and volunteer Herman Pennamon. The Gwinnett County Bar Association has appointed local attorney David Will, and the Gwinnett County District Attorney's Office has appointed a grand juror named Terri R. Duncan.
Hunter’s selection, which will complete the panel, has not yet been made. His spokesman did not immediately respond to inquiries Thursday afternoon.
The ethics ordinance calls for all those involved to make their appointments within 30 days of being notified to do so, “or as soon thereafter as is practicable.”
The 30-day period ends Sunday, Gwinnett County spokesman Joe Sorenson said.
Once the ethics board is fully assembled, Hunter will have 30 days to file a formal response to the complaint. From there, the time frame for the completion of the investigation is open-ended.
The ordinance gives the ethics board the power to interview witnesses, collect evidence and issue subpoenas. A simple majority vote of “sustained” or “not sustained” will decide the fate of the complaint.
If the complaint is sustained, the ethics board would then make a recommendation regarding possible penalties to the Board of Commissioners.
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