PORT ANGELES — Superior Court Judge Ken Williams said Thursday he will rule no sooner than next week on whether or not paperwork to recall Forks Mayor Nedra Reed is legally sufficient.
Thursday’s hearing in the Clallam County court allowed both Reed and three speaking for the petitioners — Tom Scott, Deanna DeMatteis and Barb Cox, all former Forks Police Department employees — to discuss seven charges leveled against Reed and a ballot synopsis.
The judge is to decide if the charges pass legal muster. He is not required to decide if they are true.
He must also decide if the ballot synopsis written by Clallam County Prosecutor Mark Nichols sufficiently summarizes the issues.
Williams will rule on the charges and synopsis “not before next week,” he said.
If Williams determines that the charges and synopsis are sufficient, petitioners must wait 16 days before beginning to gather the 223 signatures — 35 percent of the 635 votes cast in 2005 that elected Reed to her second term — within 180 days.
Should they succeed, Forks voters will decide whether she will remain their mayor.
