The Crossville, Tenn., city attorney said a city councilman did not violate the city's ethics code by not disclosing his campaign donation to Hamilton County Commissioner Curtis Adams when he voted to hire Mr. Adams as city manager.
But there is a link tying the city attorney's law firm to a man who is the source of other ethics questions.
City Attorney Kenneth Chadwell previously said Councilman Boyd Wyatt might have committed an ethics violation by not disclosing his $1,000 donation to Mr. Adams's 2006 County Commission campaign.
But on Monday, after saying he had reviewed Crossville's ethics policy, Mr. Chadwell said disclosure was not required.
Mr. Wyatt was one of the council members who voted unanimously to give Mr. Adams the city manager's job. Mr. Adams is expected to start the job, which pays $105,000 a year, in May.
Mr. Adams and Mr. Wyatt did not return calls for comment Monday. Crossville Mayor J.H. Graham III declined comment.
There also is a real estate link between Mr. Chadwell's law firm, Mr. Wyatt and Dean Bennett, the president of Crossville Realty who also donated to Mr. Adams' campaign.
According to real estate data, Thomas E. Looney and Mr. Bennett own a building at 236 Miller Ave., a site where Mr. Wyatt also rents office space.
Thomas E. Looney also is listed as a partner in Mr. Chadwell's law firm. The Tennessee Department of State Web site lists Thomas E. Looney as a registered agent for Crossville Realty.
Mr. Chadwell said he did not know about his law partner's business interests, but said that, if Mr. Looney does co-own the building, it would not affect Mr. Chadwell's ability to give opinions on particular ethics questions.
Attempts to reach Mr. Looney were unsuccessful.
Under Crossville's ethics code, the city's attorney investigates ethics complaints but may request another official look into such complaints if there is a potential conflict of interest on a particular issue.
Crossville Councilman Jesse Kerley said he still feels Mr. Adams' hiring was a foregone conclusion, but said he thought the attorney's opinion was accurate.
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