Challenge to Elizabeth City councilman returns to local board

ELIZABETH CITY

A judge ruled Wednesday that there was a substantial deficiency in an order declaring that Councilman Kirk Rivers had moved outside the city and that it should be sent back to the local elections board.

Superior Court Judge Alma L. Hinton's ruling came after a 90-minute hearing Monday for Rivers' appeal of a March judgment by the Pasquotank County Board of Elections.

Hinton had to review two days' worth of transcripts and filings from attorneys on both sides to determine whether the Elections Board followed proper procedures.

The board determined in March that Rivers had moved out of the city limits and was no longer eligible to serve.

But Rivers said he and his wife, Nina, were waiting to move to a house under construction within his City Council ward and his time living with his wife's parents outside the city limits was temporary.

The Elections Board needed to determine four things when considering the challenge, Hinton said: that Rivers had abandoned his first home and did not intend to return and that he had acquired a new home and resided there with the intention of making it his permanent home.

In her ruling Wednesday, Hinton said that it is clear in the transcripts that Rivers showed his intent to leave his parents' home in the 4th Ward and move to another home in the 4th Ward and he was still in that process when the challenge was submitted and ultimately decided by the Elections Board. His time at his in-laws' home was temporary and not an indication of his permanent abandonment of his original address when the case was decided, she said.

"The change was not complete," she said. "He had not actually resided in the new domicile at the time of the hearing and the order."

She said there was a substantial deficiency in the Election Board's order, and though she did not comment on the board's decision, she is sending the order back to the board and requiring that all four points of the test be considered to determine whether there was an actual change of residence.

Hinton said she is leaving it to the Pasquotank County Board of Elections to decide how best to proceed with her ruling, which could mean it would have to hold a new hearing or review the existing record.

Additionally, Hinton's ruling would not change another Superior Court judge's ruling in May to grant a motion to stay the Election Board's order that changed Rivers' registration and forced the City Council to vote his seat vacant.

Rivers continues to serve on the council until the case is settled.

After the hearing, Rivers said he was pleased with the outcome.

"The judge said everything I've been saying," he said. "All I wanted was a fair trial."

His attorney, Anita Earls, director of the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, said she will continue to represent Rivers as needed in the matter.

County Attorney Mike Cox, who represented the Elections Board, said he disagreed with some of Hinton's characterizations in her ruling. However, the Pasquotank County Board of Elections has been challenged several times in recent months with multiple protests, challenges and complaints and he said that overall he's been proud of most of the outcomes.

"Considering what the Board of Elections has been through since last fall, including appeals - four or five of them at the State Board of Elections - every order has been upheld until this point," Cox said.

He said the Elections Board will consider its options after Hinton's order is filed.

Lauren King, (252) 338-2413, lauren.king@pilotonline.com