A Superior Jourt judge tossed out a petition on Friday calling for the recall of Pendergrass council members, but didn’t issue a ruling on Mayor Monk Tolbert.
Visiting Superior Court Judge John Ott made the ruling on four members of the Pendergrass City Council — John Pethel, Hilda Gee, Tom Marlowe and Judy Stowe — after a lengthy hearing in a crowed courtroom at the Jackson County Courthouse Friday.
However, the judge said he needs additional evidence on state law concerning using Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) funds to loan city employees money before making a decision on Pendergrass Mayor Tolbert in the recall petition. A decision is expected possibly during the last week of October.
A group of Pendergrass citizens claims the mayor and city council misused city funds and violated other laws and petitioned for a recall. Friday's hearing was a "sufficiency " hearing to see if the citizens' allegations rise to the legal level to move forward.
Judge Ott said their petition was problematic because it didn’t clearly outline the facts and the grounds for recall that all citizens could understand. There was also insufficient evidence presented during the more than six-hour hearing that any city council member committed one of the allegations, he said.
As for the mayor, the judge asked the two attorneys to submit briefs on the question of the city loaning money to an employee. A city worker who is an illegal immigrant was caught driving a city vehicle without a valid driver's license by Jackson County. The city paid his fine with Tolbert's approval and the employee reimbursed the city over time.
The legal point appears to be whether or not Tolbert allowed the city to make an illegal loan to the employee. One of the citizen's key complaints in their recall petition was that the city knowingly hired an illegal worker.
Attorney for the citizens' group, Nancy Val Preda, asked Tolbert why the city paid an employee’s court fine. Tolbert said Pendergrass city administrator/police chief Rob Russell said the city could pay the fine, if it was paid back.
“In a small town, you do not operate as a you do in a big town,” Tolbert said on the witness stand.
Val Preda questioned Tolbert if the loan to Martinez meant the mayor was “acting like a bank.”
“I have the authority to handle the affairs of the town as I feel fit,” he responded.
Former Pendergrass police officer Bill Garner testified that when he approached city administrator/police chief Rob Russell about Martinez and his use of a city vehicle, Russell told Garner to ignore the issue or he would be fired.
Garner also said he and other employees, along with Val Preda, approached Mayor Tolbert about the claims.
Judge Ott asked Garner if he — as a sworn police officer — knew someone was violating the law, why did he bow to political pressure to keep his job. Garner said he followed his chain of command by reporting the allegations to the chief and mayor.

The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.
Albert Einstein
For those who were not there, it was actually embarrassing for the defendants, the small group of Pendergrass citizens who filed the petition in the first place. Mrs. Rintoul was called out on a lot of her own poor judgments. And no, the judge was not biased. He was actually comical in a way. He definitely put both sides in their place. He did, probably, pick on Mrs.Val Preda a bit, but it was only due to her poor performance as a professional. (Who foot the bill for her? If it was the citizens, you should ask for a refund. She was horrible!)
Really, before anyone should judge they should separate the emotions and the devil in their ear and look strictly at facts. I am so thankful the citizens did ask for a recall though. That way there was a forum in which the city felt able to tell the truth. Could you imagine trying to reveal the truth in a room filled with critics and stone throwers? I bet they really have been struggling through all of this.
And about the loan, it was paid back. If the employee did not have the money to pay for his bail and had to sit there for a prolonged period of time, how would that serve his family? Would you not want the same outcome if it had been your family? Especially if you lived in a small community? Many companies buy employees uniforms or tools and then let the employee pay them back. I know this was not a ticket he incurred for the city, but can’t we just put this down as one bad judgment that was financially repaid? None of us are without moments of bad judgment. Let’s just cop this up to a learning curve. I have a feeling it will never happen again.
Gretchen, you were wrong about one thing…the “dirty dancers” are not off the streets… they are still here marching around spreading the word of their revelation. I pray now people can see through the haze and see it is just the devil talking.
I sat in the court room Friday for the six-hour hearing and it was the most difficult thing I have ever had to do. It's bad enough to sit on the rock hard wooden benches with your back hurting, but to have to listen to all the "crap" that went on was even worse.
Our recall effort was combined with the four employees that were fired back in July. They were called to the stand to testify and everyone of them either implicated themselves or one the others. I wouldn't be surprised if all of them don't have charges filed against them before this is over.
The judge instructed attorney Val Preda over and over to ask direct questions pertaining to the four issues that were on the recall petition. Four issues? We have about one hundred and four issues, but they could not be brought up because our recall petition was not presented correctly.
One of our city council members said that they "have never voted against anything that the mayor has brought up". So where does that leave the citizens of Pendergrass?
The city council members approve everything without question. We the citizens, who pay the bills, can't ask what the money is being spent for and why it takes hundreds of thousands of dollars to run a town with about three hundred people. The police department collected over $500,000 in one year...where did it go? I demand to know, don't you?
Right now, we are at the mercy of the judge. I pray that he will have the wisdom to see what is really going on in our town.
This is going to be taken the wrong way, but on the hopes it may shed some light to even one individual, take the time to read Malcom X's speech, "The Ballot Or The Bullet".
I too would be concerned with the city council members if they responded like that. Seems like another recall should be applied for after criminal charges are brought on the pendergrass officials. Then it can be onehundered and five issues on the recall application. The paper hasn't said that the DA or GBI have closed the case against them. So there must be something going on.
All three whistle blowers were not called to testify - only two of them were. While some of the testimony was not in their favor the majority of it was. I find it odd that the mayor can't seem to remember the details to any of the questions asked by Ms. Val Preda but conveiently knew the answer to every question asked by his attorney. If Mayor Tolberts memory is this bad why is he in charge of a town? Just because there may not be case law for every complaint against the city leaders doesn't mean that it's ethical or right. Before you start celebrating this as a victory maybe you should wait and see what the results of the GBI investigation are. I think either way the days are numbered for the mayor and the city council. I don't think thay stand a chance in $%&&*^%^ of being re-elected!
Why don't you acknowledge the Pendergrass recall???? All of the other papers, even the AJC have printed it! You are such a one-sided person (I would call you a journalist, however you are clearly not). If you had a real paper, you would print ALL news, whether or not it kicked you in the a** or not. I know this will never appear on your on line edition, but at least you know what a one-sided person you are and you will never be a real "journalist" or "editor".
Mike