Manchester Tries To Recoup Fees From Former Alderman's Lawsuit

An attempt to recoup legal fees from a former alderman's lawsuit filed against the Manchester Board of Aldermen is stalled.

This week, City Administrator Ed Blattner told board members he had a brief telephone conversation with former Alderman Bob Tullock after he was asked to contact Tullock at a recent board meeting. 

The city wants repayment from Tullock for the estimated $2,200 it spent on legal fees when he filed a lawsuit against the board in July 2010. 

Tullock said he was unfairly stripped of his title as board president and wanted a judge to decide how many board members are required to pass a motion. 

Under Missouri statute, the majority vote of board members present is all that is needed to pass a motion, Tullock said. However, Manchester City Attorney Patrick Gunn previously stated that is not the case to elect a board president. Gunn said all board members were required for that vote.

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Tullock's lawsuit was ultimately dismissed by a judge in March. He then lost his Ward 1 seat to current Alderman Paul Hamill in the April election.

Since then, the board has discussed trying to recoup the estimated $2,200 the city reportedly spent on legal fees pertaining to the suit. The city initially sent Tullock a certified letter, but it was returned. Board members voiced concerns at the last meeting that maybe Tullock was not at home to receive the letter when it was delivered, so they suggested the city contact Tullock by phone.

Blattner did so after the last meeting and then sent the board an email (included in the PDF portion of this article) explaining the phone conversation. Blattner said Tullock had "no comment" on the issue.

Town and Country-Manchester Patch also contacted Tullock.

"No. I have no comment about any of that," Tullock told Patch when we asked him if he planned to repay the city or even discuss the issue with the city.

Tullock also told Patch that his question still remains unanswered.

"The ultimate question still remains, 'Does it take three members or four members on a board (to vote)?' That question never was answered by the court," Tullock said.

No word yet by the City of Manchester on what, if anything, will be the next step.