News you can use
News you can use
It was with both amusement and embarrassment that I read the article printed in the Havre Daily News on Feb. 28, 2017, regarding the new Hill County attorney, Jessica Cole-Hodgkinson. Let me be up front — as is my habit — that I work for the Hill County Personnel Office, which is supervised by the Hill County attorney.
I have served the Hill County community as Personnel Clerk for 14 years, pioneering the position under the expert tutelage of former Hill County Attorney and District Judge Dave Rice and former Hill County Attorney and current U.S. Attorney Cyndee Peterson. I cannot extend enough praise to Dave and Cyndee for their exemplary leadership and the high standards they trained me to achieve. I have carried on that training through the years, to the benefit of the people of Hill County.
This is not something I want to write, nor should I have to feel the need to say anything. However, I feel it is my duty and obligation to fellow Hill County citizens to inform them as to the activities going on in the Hill County Attorney’s Office, while following all confidentiality laws. I know what my rights are as an employee, I know what Hill County’s rights are as an employer. Any adverse action against me from Hill County officials in any form will be handled in an appropriate manner. I am not writing this letter on Hill County time nor am I using Hill County resources; this is my own time and it is my choice to exercise my First Amendment rights to free speech, to inform the public about what is going on that some would dearly love to sweep under the carpet and ignore, hoping it will go away. It won’t.
Many know of my love of local history, and good historians come to their conclusions using facts and not fiction and spin. The fact is Ms. Cole-Hodgkinson has not been in the office much since she was appointed to serve as Hill County attorney Nov. 25, 2016. She has apparently spent much of her time on the Hill County taxpayer’s dime in Missoula, supposedly closing her private practice as required under Montana statute (MCA 7-4-2704). For, while staff members must come in to work and do their jobs in order to get paid, she gets her paycheck regardless of how many hours she works — or in this case, doesn’t work. We Hill County taxpayers pay this position just short of $95,000 annually (data from the Hill County Auditor’s Office).
The audacity of her whining to the Hill County public about her work load, while piling her evidently open files on her desk for a cute photo op, and apparently neglecting to mention the fact that she has only recently been putting in regular hours is absurd. Furthermore, to state that we Hill County residents don’t understand the amount of crime in our county shows how little she thinks of us and her assessment is absolutely wrong. She must think we’re stupid. We know it is bad. We know what is out there. That’s why we pay for law enforcement personnel and support staff, equipment for them to apprehend suspects, raised our taxes to pay for a facility to incarcerate them, pay for her office to prosecute them, as well as the local court systems so justice can be served. We pay for these things so we can get on with our lives, building this community which in turn generates tax revenue to help fund her office, so she can schlep in whenever she pleases, sit behind her desk and cry the blues about her work load.
Another tidbit of information the people of Hill County should know about is the fact that she refuses to answer emails or return voice mails. This isn’t just staff members. It is Hill County employees in different offices, Hill County elected officials and department heads, defense attorneys, other offices who are in regular contact with the Hill County Attorney’s Office, and crime victims. It’s as though those who are trying to communicate with her using email and voice mail aren’t good enough for her to answer. I was informed she might respond to text messages. What kind of precedent does this set? Not everyone has a cellphone. Even fewer have her cellphone number — even I don’t have it. Text messages are not more secure than Hill County’s email system. What about document retention laws? The media’s ears in particular should perk up.
In her previous position as deputy attorney for Lake County, Ms. Cole-Hodgkinson failed to perform the duties of her position, which resulted in the nonprosecution of a violent offender. An article printed in The Missoulian’s June 21, 2014, issue (available online, just Google it) titled “Pablo man accused of ‘vicious’ attack on jailer freed; prosecutors too slow in filing charges” should be read by every Hill County adult resident.
People have gone to the Hill County commissioners seeking positive solutions to the problems of Ms. Cole-Hodgkinson only to run into a brick wall. I, personally, have gone in three different times to complain to the commissioners about her lack of job performance, that she is not providing me necessary documentation and information to do part of my job, only to hear nothing back. I know of others who have gone in more times than I have, only to get the same reaction. Ms. Cole-Hodgkinson is not autonomous, and should be held accountable immediately for her actions just like any other Hill County employee would be!
There are many more issues. However, most fall under confidentiality laws and I will not violate them. What I have submitted should be sufficient for any reasonable Hill County voter to come to the conclusion that perhaps another person should fulfill the role of Hill County attorney, thus alleviating Ms. Cole-Hodgkinson of any worries about being elected over some unachievable, pie-in-the-sky funding scheme.
Emily Mayer
Havre resident
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