Judge will rule soon in Clay Chastain lawsuit | The Kansas City Star

Jackson County Circuit Judge Joel Fahnestock said Friday she will rule next week in Clay Chastain’s attempt to get Mayor Sly James disqualified from the ballot.

James and his lawyer, Pat McInerney, were in court Friday on a motion to dismiss Chastain’s lawsuit.

Chastain, who was eliminated in the three-way mayoral primary, argues James should be disqualified because he was late paying a Dec. 31 property tax bill.

But McInerney said James was current with his taxes when he signed an affidavit Dec. 9 to get on the primary ballot, and he is current with his taxes now, as required by the City Charter. McInerney said the statute that Chastain cites to disqualify the mayor was repealed by the Missouri legislature last year.

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Chastain’s St. Louis attorney, Elbert Walton Jr., who was on a conference call to the court, said he was unsure what statute McInerney was referring to.

Fahnestock said she knows timing is of the essence for a ruling because the election authorities need to start printing the June 23 general election ballot soon. She gave the parties until 5 p.m. Monday to file final briefs and said she will rule as quickly as possible after that, to allow time for appeals.