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A group of attorneys proposed to represent BoMA in the pursuit of a petition regarding documents marked for shredding died out in a three to three tie on Mon, Sept. 11.

The pursuit, which was defined as “a waste of taxpayers’ money” by City Attorney Stephen Worsham in a previous meeting, came after the Mon, Aug. 28 meeting in which Alderman Daniel Berry moved to add an agenda item to the meeting to take steps to “bring resolution” regarding on-leave Human Resources Director Casta Brice.

Item No. 23-166, proposed by Alderman Bobbie Wilson, was introduced in a memo stating “Consider approval to retain the services of Patrick, Beard, Schulman & Jacoway, P.C., to assist the City of Tullahoma to regain custody of the documents that Human Resource Director Casta Brice allegedly placed in a shredding bin on or about Feb. 1, which gave rise to her being placed on paid administrative leave pending an investigation, and to also assist in said investigation of Ms. Brice, in relation to her involvement in that incident.”

Wilson stipulated in the memo that “Upon approval by the Board of Mayor and Alderman, the firm of Patrick, Beard, Schulman & Jacoway, P.C. requires a $5,000 retainer. They will send monthly invoices for the work performed each month based on the current hourly rates of the attorneys in the firm performing work on the case. The City would pay the firm’s monthly invoices and the firm would hold the retainer in trust until the end of the engagement. The firm will deduct the final month’s invoice from the retainer. Attached is a document which lists the current hourly rates of each attorney at the firm. The firm anticipates the principal attorney will be Lance W. Pope and Robert Wheeler will be the attorneys that primarily work on the case, but we may assign work to other attorneys based on the needs of the case at a particular time.”

Wilson’s research, according to the memo, states that Pope “served for ten years as a prosecutor at the Hamilton County District Attorney’s Office where he most recently held the position of Executive Assistant District Attorney. While at the District Attorney’s Office, Mr. Pope handled numerous high-profile trials and worked alongside all major state and federal law enforcement agencies including the Chattanooga Police Department, Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, Tennessee Bureau of Investigations, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Since joining the firm of Patrick, Beard, Schulman & Jacoway, P.C., Lance has utilized his experience as a litigator and his business background as head financial officer for a technologies company to assist the firm’s business clients with a variety of matters including LLC member disputes. Lance also assists businesses that receive inquiries or investigative requests from law enforcement agencies and often represents individuals in a wide variety of criminal defense matters.”

The other attorney Wilson proposed the board hire, Wheeler, “has a general litigation practice with a focus on employment law, where he represents employers and employee’s discrimination cases based on age, race, religion, gender, and disability. He also focuses on civil litigation, including personal injury, actions to quiet title, and probate matters. Mr. Wheeler has represented clients in state and federal court in Chattanooga, as well as Knoxville, and Greenville.”

According to the memo, Pope’s hourly fee rate is $310, and Wheeler’s hourly fee rate is $275.

Wilson made the motion to hire, Alderman Jenna Amacher seconded.

Mayor Ray Knowis requested that City Attorney Stephen Worsham provide legal advice before BoMA voted.

“I have discussed this matter with a couple of attorneys locally, and they probably will not be interested in representing the city in this matter,” said Worsham.

“I know this is kind of a pressing matter,” said Wilson, “and I thought, in the spirit of trying to streamline things, I was able to do some research and find this group. I think if you read their background information, you will see that they are well qualified.”

The vote died out in a tie, with Wilson, Amacher and Alderman Kurt Glick voting for the hire and Aldermen Daniel Berry and Derick Mann, along with Mayor Knowis voted against. Alderman Jerry Mathis was not present.