With the court still unable to serve county clerk candidate Steve Wyatt Earp, a hearing regarding his eligibility to run in the Aug. 4 primary has been pushed back a second time.
A hearing on two cases brought forward by Earp’s opponent, Brent Myers, was originally scheduled for May 19. The hearing was moved to Tuesday, May 26, to allow more time for Earp to be served. However, as of Tuesday morning, Earp has yet to be served at his listed address in Hillsboro.
The hearing has been rescheduled for 9 a.m. Friday, June 5, with Judge Alfred Rathert presiding.
At the May 26 hearing, County Counselor Jason Cordes said June 8 is the final day names can be stricken from the Aug. 4 ballot. He said the ballot information must be sent to the printer, and proofs must be sent back to County Clerk Jeannie Goff in time for absentee voting to begin on June 23.
Myers, who is representing himself in these suits, claimed at the hearing that Earp is evading service and “hiding out.”
On April 29, Myers filed two pre-election challenges with the 23rd judicial circuit court, alleging Earp does not meet the minimum requirements to run in the primaries. Myers and Earp filed with the Republican Party for the county clerk and central township committeeman positions.
Myers alleges Earp has not lived in Jefferson County long enough to satisfy the requirements laid out in the Jefferson County home rule charter. The charter requires candidates to live in the county for at least one year before filing for office, among other requirements. Myers alleges Earp lived, voted and paid taxes in St. Louis County last year.
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies first attempted to serve Earp regarding the lawsuits on April 30, noting a car in the driveway of the Hillsboro home Earp is renting. Deputies again tried on May 6 and were unable to serve Earp. The service process was restarted on May 14, court documents show.
“I’m not in any way hiding from this, but I’m not going to play the way (Myers) sets the rules,” Earp said. “Over the course of the time this has been going on, I’ve seen Brent at probably a half dozen Republican events. If he wanted to get me served, he could have called up a sheriff’s deputy right then and there. I’ve been available; it’s just that I don’t sit at home, waiting for someone to stop by.”
Earp, a political consultant, confirmed he still resides at the Hillsboro home. Attorney Dan Gerry is representing Earp in these lawsuits.
“We all have responsibilities,” Earp said. “I have work, and I have clients all over the state. Last week, I put hundreds of miles on my car delivering signs for clients.
“If (Myers) were serious about this, I think he would have hired an attorney to represent this case. There’s a saying: a man who is his own attorney has a fool for a client. That’s kind of where we’re at in this case.”
Gerry filed a limited entry of appearance, contesting the summons for Earp on May 19. The filing also requests a motion to dismiss the lawsuits “for lack of personal jurisdiction,” arguing the court should throw out the lawsuits because it allegedly does not have the legal authority to make decisions on Earp.
Myers stated in his lawsuits that the county’s election authority, along with Secretary of State Denny Hoskins and the Department of Revenue, are “necessary parties to ensure that any order of this court is fully implemented.”
Jefferson County filed a motion to dismiss Goff as a party in the lawsuit, and an attorney told Rathert at the Tuesday hearing that he will soon file a motion to dismiss the Secretary of State’s office from the suit as well.
Rathert said he was not inclined to allow the motions until Earp was served.