Although they briefly stepped behind closed doors to confer with their attorney, Hamilton County Commission Chairman Chip Baker said commissioners are satisfied that Mayor Weston Wamp has complied with their directives to restore County Attorney Rheubin Taylor's employment, which will include continuing Taylor's pay.
"We consider this issue closed," Baker said after a meeting Friday afternoon. "We're moving forward, and we're exicted about that. It's just been a long time coming."
Commissioners went one-by-one through three resolutions they had passed following Wamp's attempt to fire Taylor last month, and they verified with Wamp's attorney, Barret Albritton, that the mayor's office was in compliance.
The county will provide Taylor with the back pay he's owed since the attempted termination, and Taylor has regained access to his computer and cellphone.
Taylor's salary as of Oct. 14 was $180,420. A check was cut Friday for $5,995 that covers 96 hours of back pay from Oct. 17 to Nov. 1.
However, Taylor's attorney, Neil Thomas, did raise concerns about a termination letter Wamp sent Taylor in October, which Thomas said has not been withdrawn, and a radio interview Wamp participated in that was aired Friday morning.
"The mayor announced this morning on the radio his intent to continue to terminate Mr. Taylor as county attorney," Thomas said. "I consider that to be against the spirit of this commission, and I consider it to be a fly in the face of the resolutions adopted by this commission and basically dares you to take any action."
Taylor and Thomas had no further comment Friday.
During an animated exchange with members of the commission, Albritton stated that the mayor's office has complied with the resolution concerning Taylor's contract as it was written, which he said does not include mention of a letter of termination.
"All of his rights of the county attorney have been restored, which is what the resolution specifically spoke to," Albritton said. "The resolution does not address in one way or another any letter of termination. We have complied with the very letter of the resolution as passed by this commission. There has been no attempt, no effort to flout or get around anything."
Commissioner Joe Graham, R-Lookout Valley, continued to grill Albritton, stating that he's concerned the executive branch will ignore future resolutions passed by the commission. That would have a detrimental impact on the county and its bond rating, he said.
"We've been handed that as a gift from our prior commissioners, from our prior mayor," Graham said. "I don't want to be a part of the group that loses a AAA bond rating from all three rating agencies."
Commissioners ultimately opted to step into a legal meeting for about 10 minutes. They returned to open session without taking any action.
"It was refreshing that we finally came to a resolution of something that we hoped would be resolved much earlier," Baker said afterward. "But the fact that it's resolved, that the mayor and the commission are working together, that the mayor is in compliance with our resolutions, we appreciate. And we look forward to nothing but great things coming in the future."
Baker doesn't anticipate the commission will press the issue about the letter of termination.
Speaking after the meeting, Graham said the mayor has indicated he intends to honor the three resolutions discussed Friday, and commissioners have to respect that Wamp will do so.
"Is there something dangling? I mean what he's saying in the media to you all and what he's saying like on talk radio this morning, he's making it out like this is a witch hunt," Graham said. "And I would like very much for that to stop."
In a phone call after the meeting Friday, Wamp said the matter is not resolved, stating that his office has worked over the past 22 days with several commissioners to develop a plan that would avoid litigation. Taylor has been "obstinate" and "unwilling to entertain any type of transition," Wamp said.
"In the meantime, the mountain of evidence continues to build that we have an unethical county attorney," he said. "I have shared with commissioners that I don't think ultimately it's in the best interest of the county for the county attorney and the county mayor to not see eye to eye ... but further I've shared with them (that) I don't think, when we all have a full picture of all the unethical behavior within the attorney's office, that any of us will want to be standing with Rheubin Taylor."
Wamp announced Oct. 14 that he was firing Taylor effective immediately, citing destruction of public records, private work conducted on county time and breach of attorney-client privilege. Taylor has not responded publicly to the allegations.
Taylor continued to serve in the role of county attorney with support from the County Commission, but until Friday, he had not been paid.
Following his announcement, Wamp produced two legal opinions he had requested -- one drafted by Knoxville attorney Dwight Tarwater -- that suggested the mayor has the unilateral authority to terminate the county attorney.
That argument was resoundingly opposed by members of the County Commission, who have hired their own attorney, John Konvalinka, to assist them in the matter.
The week after Wamp's announcement, the commission unanimously passed resolutions reasserting their authority over the county attorney's office space and reaffirming Taylor's four-year contract, which is set to end June 30, 2025. They later overrode Wamp's attempt to veto those resolutions, which was again done unanimously.
On Oct. 31, Taylor sued the mayor in Chancery Court challenging Wamp's attempt to fire him. Taylor was granted a temporary restraining order that restored his health benefits.
Last week, members of the commission were frustrated to hear that Taylor continued to lack access to his county computer, which the mayor returned Tuesday.
The panel passed a resolution during its regular meeting this week setting a Friday noon deadline for Wamp to reach an agreement with Taylor. Otherwise, they would direct Konvalinka to take legal action to ensure their resolutions are enforced. The mayor said Thursday that his office is in compliance with those orders.
In October, commissioners hired Konvalinka for up to $10,000, and Wamp said Tarwater's services cost $5,000. Additionally, Wamp said the mayor's office has authorized up to $25,000 to retain outside counsel, which is the limit his office can spend without approval from the commission.
Public records obtained by the Chattanooga Times Free Press show Taylor has worked on about 125 cases in probate court since the beginning of 2012, which included handling the estate for former Mayor Jim Coppinger's mother after she died in 2017.
Contact David Floyd at dfloyd@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249. Follow him on Twitter @flavid_doyd.