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Town votes to fire police chief

By Mark Harrison
The Times-Journal

Published March 9, 2010

Ider Police Chief Neal Sparks has been placed on administrative leave, but technically still has a job despite a 3-2 vote from the Ider Town Council to fire him.

That vote came at the board’s regular meeting on Monday, following an executive session.

Council members James “Snuffy” Smith, Mickey Smith and Willard Crabtree voted in favor of firing Sparks, with Britt Mann and Billy Williams voting against. Mayor Brad Hannah abstained.

Citizen “complaints” against Sparks was the reason given for the vote to fire Sparks. However, according to Tracy Roberts, assistant general counsel with the Alabama League of Municipalities, the vote taken by the council on Monday isn’t enough to fire Sparks, under Alabama law.

The Code of Alabama says that “any person appointed to office in any city or town may, for cause, after a hearing, be removed by the officer making the appointment.” In Ider, the council as a whole voted to appoint Sparks.

The law says, “the city council may remove, by a two-thirds vote of all those elected to the council, any such person in the several departments for incompetence, malfeasance, misfeasance or nonfeasance in office and for conduct detrimental to good order or discipline, including habitual neglect of duty.”

Roberts said the council may only vote to remove Sparks for one of the specific reasons cited in the code and, further, that the code was amended in 2009 to allow for the mayor – in a town with a population of less than 12,000 – to vote on such issues and be considered as a member of the council and a necessary part of the required two-thirds vote.

He said the council’s reason for firing Sparks may not be specific enough to meet legal criteria, but pointed out that the vote to fire Sparks fell short of the necessary two-thirds, which includes the vote of the mayor.

Hannah said Sparks also had not been given a proper personnel hearing. He said Sparks requested such a hearing on Monday. Hannah said Sparks was placed on administrative leave on Tuesday and a personnel hearing has been scheduled to take place in two weeks. Hannah said it would be up to Sparks whether the hearing would be open to the public.

The Ider council met for the first time Monday since Smith’s arrest on charges of allegedly assaulting Ider police officer Lee Harrison.

According to a statement released Feb. 25 by Fort Payne-based attorney Tommy French, who serves as town attorney for Ider, Smith allegedly “had words” with Ider police officer Lee Harrison at Ider Town Hall sometime that afternoon.

Hannah said earlier that Smith apparently wanted to speak to Sparks’ about concerns over where the police department has been buying fuel for patrol cars. But Feb. 25 was the chief’s off day, so Smith approached Harrison and the conversation apparently elevated into a verbal argument.

Harrison, a part-time officer, said Smith “shoved him more than once” and “threatened to hit him with a [metallic] staple gun.”

After Smith allegedly launched into an attack, Harrison used a taser to subdue Smith, then put the councilman behind bars. Smith currently faces misdemeanor charges of harassment and resisting arrest.

French said Smith was later released on his own recognizance. Smith, who is in his early 60s and serving in his first term as a councilman, denies the assault ever took place. Smith claims he “asked the officer for his name” but did not attack or threaten him.

Harrison did not attend Monday’s council meeting, but many in attendance questioned Harrison’s use of a Taser to subdue Smith. Crabtree is the only councilmember to directly address the issue.

“The Taster should be your last resort not your first,” Crabtree said.

Several in the audience called for a change in Ider’s administration.

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