The Never-Ending Court House Legal War
A legal stalemate in Benton County leaves lawyers, litigants, and commissioners in a dizzying spiral of injunctions and contempt charges.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Attorneys, whose numbers are increasing, and litigants, whose numbers are not diminishing, gained another little breathing spell in the court house controversy when the hearings in the superior court were postponed until February 21. The postponement effects the case against the old board to show cause why they should not be permanently enjoined from letting a contract for building a court house, the case against the new board to show cause why they should not disavow the act of the old board in letting the contract, and the case against Clements and McNeill to show cause why they should not be fined for contempt of court by reason of their disregarding the temporary restraining order issued by Judge Trusk. The mixup has now reached a stage where it is difficult for the ordinary layman to follow the proceedings. It will be necessary to tag the attorneys and their clients before it can be determined who is who. As a matter of fact, the attorneys already in the case are just a little bit in doubt as to who or what they represent and some of the principals in the cases don't know who their attorneys are.
“It will be necessary to tag the attorneys and their clients before it can be determined who is who.”
Local government disputes over building projects and contract legitimacy often turn into years-long legal battles that define a town's political history, a common struggle in rapidly developing areas like Kennewick.
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