Town Doesn’t Want To Pay Injured Marshal Mayor Dismisses Town Council Vote As Part Of A “Vendetta”

Springdale Marshal Jerry Taylor may not get paid at the end of the month if the Town Council gets its way, but Taylor says he’ll keep working.

The council voted 4-0 in a special meeting on Monday to withhold Taylor’s $1,500 monthly salary on grounds that an injury prevents him from performing his duties. Taylor’s right arm will be in a sling for almost three months while he recovers from surgery to repair ligaments torn when he was thrown from a horse.

Mayor Ernie Gehrke dismissed the council action as part of a “vendetta” by council members who oppose his and Taylor’s efforts to clean up the town’s rowdy reputation. Gehrke said Taylor’s citation book proves he has been performing his duties.

“He just can’t perform any strong-arm tactics,” Gehrke said.

Council members Lonnie Anderson and Ray Turner said the council is concerned about violating state laws against making a gift of public funds.

“We can’t pay him if he can’t perform his duties according to the ordinance,” Anderson said.

The marshal’s job description says he must be “physically fit” and “not have any physical disabilities that may restrict the performance of his duties.”

“There is no light-duty billet for the man,” Turner said. “Being disabled, we are not able to pay him.”

Turner said he doesn’t regret the town’s failure to offer sick leave because “the man is off most of the time anyway.”

There’s been bad blood between Turner and Taylor since August 1993 when Turner, owner of the Pow Wow Tavern, was mayor. Taylor and his deputy at the time both resigned when Turner restricted their ability to arrest drunken drivers outside of town.

Running as a reformer, Gehrke unseated Turner and promptly rehired Taylor when he took office in 1994. Just before Turner left office, he attempted to block Taylor’s return by issuing a long-term marshal’s contract to someone else. But Gehrke prevailed on grounds that contracted help violated state law empowering the mayor to hire his own employees.

The council also struck out with an ordinance requiring the marshal to live inside the town. Taylor, who lives just outside, was immune because he was rehired before the ordinance took effect.

Taylor said Tuesday that he plans to go to court to stop what he considers the council’s continued harassment.

Meanwhile, Taylor said neither lack of pay nor his injured arm will keep him from doing his job.

“I do have a reserve deputy who I have been training for two years, and he has taken over the muscle part of it and we’re working together just fine,” Taylor said. “We still have law here.”

, DataTimes