Archie says county should expect a lawsuit if supervisors remove him as vice president

JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) - Hinds County District 2 Supervisor David Archie said the public shouldn’t expect a replay of a meeting earlier this summer to remove him as board vice president.

Instead, if the board of supervisors votes to remove him, the county should expect a lawsuit.

A special called meeting is slated for 9 a.m., Wednesday, September 29, to remove him as board vice president and president-elect.

The meeting was called by Board President Credell Calhoun.

Calhoun attempted to call for a vote to remove Archie on July 28, but the meeting ended after Archie gaveled it down.

“If he wants to put it on the agenda, we’re not going to use the gavel. We’re going to put all those matters stated on the record, and we’re going to move forward to a legal proceeding,” he said. “It’s embarrassing that he’s going to force a judge to rule on a matter we feel we’re going to win.”

Archie said Calhoun doesn’t have the votes to remove him from the position, nor has he followed the procedure to do so.

On top of that, Archie said Calhoun can’t have him removed as vice president because the board of supervisors adopted a policy to elect board officers at the start of the current term.

Minutes from the January 6, 2020 meeting shows that the board set the policy to elect president and vice president during the first meeting of the board term, with the vice-president assuming the presidency at the start of the following calendar year.

“It doesn’t have anything about making the vote in the middle of the year... at the end of the year,” he said. “You only take that vote at the first of January, on who becomes vice president.”

Archie also is claiming that Calhoun is violating Robert’s Rules of Order, which lays out procedures for removing a board officer or changing a board’s governing rules.

“It takes two-thirds of a vote to suspend the rules to even have a discussion,” he said. “It takes a two-thirds vote to – four out of five (supervisors) - to remove someone from president or vice-president.”

At the most, Archie believes three members will vote against him: Calhoun, District 4 Supervisor Vern Gavin, and District 5 Supervisor Bobcat McGowan.

Meanwhile, he says Calhoun has not said why he wants to remove the supervisor from his post.

“To this day, we don’t even know what the cause is,” he said. “He has never presented the cause.”

Calhoun previously told WLBT that he wanted to remove Archie because of behavioral concerns.

In May, Archie disrupted a meeting when he called Gavin a “bald-headed sissy.”

At the time, members were discussing moving road funds out of District 2.

Archie had been brought up on but acquitted of domestic charges in April.

Then, there was the July 28 meeting, where Archie’s persistent pounding of the gavel prevented any votes from being heard.

“That only took place when he tried to place the matter on the agenda. You have to have a previous cause,” he said. “He’s supposed to come to the board and explain that he has a cause to remove a supervisor.”

Archie believes Calhoun wants to remove him for calling out the president on county issues, including a vote to give the Hinds County Election Commission $60,000 in county funds to help conduct a municipal election.

He also questioned other election commission expenses and why the board of supervisors voted to remove Thelman Boyd as public works director.

Archie also pointed to a recent transfer order that was leaked to media that showed Calhoun had ordered an inmate at the Raymond Detention Center to be transferred to a lower-security unit.

“He want(s) to be a dictator,” he said. “But the law is real simple. Everything that we have found, the only cause you can have is whether or not a supervisor has missed consecutive meetings of the board or takes a leave of absence without providing information to the board that you’re taking a leave,” he said. “A heated argument with board members (is) not a cause for removal.”

Calhoun previously said he would direct the sheriff to remove Archie if he attempted to disrupt a meeting.

Archie said the sheriff cannot arrest him for having a disagreement with other board members or for disrupting a meeting.

“That’s not the reason I’m not using the gavel,” he said. “I’m not using the gavel because the constituents need to hear what is going on... I’m going to use another style tomorrow... I’m going to use that opportunity to (say) why I was using the gavel so they can get a clear understanding of exactly what (Calhoun) is doing.”

Calhoun declined to comment for this story.

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