Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert files motion to dismiss petition seeking her ouster

Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert has filed a motion in circuit court to dismiss a petition to remove her from office.

The motion, filed Monday, states that even "if each and every relevant and material allegation contained in the complaint is admitted as true, these relevant and material allegations do not establish a cause of action against" Halbert.

In addition, Halbert's attorney argued in the motion that even if the claims outlined in the removal petition were true, they do not present convincing evidence that Halbert knowingly and willingly neglected the duties of her elected office.

A separate court filing also submitted Monday further outlined Halbert's argument that the petition to remove her, which was filed last week by Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp, does not show intentional neglect on her part but rather "at best simple negligence, mere mistakes of judgment and good faith efforts to perform her duties."

Related: Ouster petition filed against Halbert, budget season begins | The Week in Politics

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At a press conference Tuesday, Halbert said she had no plans to resign and she and her attorney reiterated that she had not willfully neglected her duties as clerk.

Halbert also said she had been asking for a forensic audit of the clerk's office since she was first elected, which she claimed could have rectified the problems outlined in the petition.

“We are very, very concerned about the pursuit of something that never should have happened” if the audit had been completed, she said.

Halbert again raised concerns about the budget for her department and low salaries for her staff, a topic she recently broached at Shelby County Commission meetings. She also said the department had outgrown the facilities for the clerk’s office and that they serve more customers than the resources available to them allow.

Halbert's attorney, Darrell J. O’Neal, said attempts to remove elected officials from office in Tennessee are rare and usually involve criminal activity. No criminal charges have been filed against the clerk.

O'Neal said he and Halbert could not make extensive comments Tuesday as the litigation was ongoing.

Why was an ouster petition filed against Wanda Halbert?

The petition lists a history of incorrect financial reporting, strains on auto dealers in the county, comptroller deficiencies and the clerk's failure to show up at a May 1 Shelby County Commission meeting where she was supposed to present a corrective action plan as reasons for the ouster petition.

Halbert has been under investigation by Wamp, who was appointed after Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy recused his office, for 11 months.

The petition requested she be suspended from her official capacity as county clerk.

"The State of Tennessee further requests that as a part of this petition that this honorable Court suspend Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert from performing any duties of her office pending a final hearing and determination of this matter by this Court," the petition says.

Financial reports have also been "consistently inaccurate, with collected dollar amounts not added properly," the petition said.

“This gross neglect of duties has, over time, caused county officials to have zero confidence in Ms. Halbert’s ability to run an office that collects large amounts of taxpayer dollars,” the petition said.

In addition, the petition claimed Halbert has refused offers for assistance in rectifying these issues.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Wanda Halbert seeks to dismiss petition to remove her from office