MEMPHIS, Tenn. — It was déjà vu all over again this week at the Shelby County Commission. The commission welcomed several new members who in theory bring a collective breath of fresh air—and hopefully fresh ideas—to the board.
But then there is returning commissioner Henri Brooks, who served on the board from 2006 to 2014. Her tenure was full of drama practically the entire time.
Now that she’s back, Brooks seems interested in renewing old grievances with the county attorney’s office.
In her first meeting this week, she supported an ordinance to move the appointment of the county ethics officer out of the hands of the county attorney.
The proposal came out of nowhere and appears to be retaliation on Brooks’ part—after she was investigated in 2014 on ethics charges for not living in her district.
She left office before the issue was resolved but clearly she hasn’t forgotten the embarrassment.
But come on, the commission has a lot more pressing issues to address—from crime and economic development to public transportation and infrastructure.
The first thing on the commissioners’ agenda for a new term does not need to be settling an eight year old grievance to placate one of their own.
In short, this is a self-serving move if there ever was one, and we only hope that this ordinance dies on the vine before the third and final vote.
I’m Otis Sanford, and that’s my point of view.