McNeely resigns from Maysville council

Maysville City Council member Rebecca McNeely submitted a resignation letter to the city Monday afternoon.

The act follows months of controversy surrounding her whereabouts at meetings and the possible misuse of city funds. City Clerk Barbara Thomas said that the city is still pursuing the issue of the $1,084 in question.

In addition, McNeely was arrested in December on drug-related charges after she allegedly gave prescription pain medication to a friend to sell.
In the resignation letter, McNeely cited “medical and other personal reasons” for abandoning her Ward 3 post.

She also said it took much “soul searching” and “it was a pleasure serving the citizens for the last six years.”

Mayor Jerry Baker said that he did not know McNeely was going to resign. The resignation is affective immediately, placing the city in a race to meet state special election laws.

“I just don’t want to leave Ward 3 unrepresented, and you know, I feel like it’s been unrepresented,” Baker said. “The people of the ward, you know, wanted to know what was happening. So now they know what’s happening. So all we need to do is get someone in Ward 3 – hopefully by July.”

County attorney Jane Range said that the city cannot hold a special election for a new council member until July 20, according to state law.

This means that until July, with the guaranteed absence of one council member, if another member could not attend a meeting, there wouldn’t be a quorum.

“We don’t want to leave the town without a quorum,” Range said. “But at the same time, we don’t control state election laws.”
Before July 20, the city will have to ensure that it’s gone through all the steps to hold a special election. This includes gaining approval from the Justice Department, printing notices in the legal organ newspaper and calling the election with ample notice.