Court of Appeals Affirms Ruling Invalidating Last November’s Wet-Dry Election in Jamestown

The Kentucky Court of Appeals has affirmed a Russell Circuit Court decision which declared invalid last November’s special wet-dry election in the Jamestown area.  The state’s second highest court filed its ruling this morning in Frankfort upholding Special Judge Julia Adams’ ruling which she made in early March in a lawsuit filed by several Russell Countians.  The suit challenged the validity of the November 24^th, 2009 special election seeking limited alcohol sales in restaurants in Jamestown.  Jamestown resident Greg Shaw, a supporter of alcohol sales in local restaurants, appealed Judge Adams’ order setting aside the local option election which was conducted in the Lake and Jamestown precincts.  The local option election produced a “no” vote within the City of Jamestown, but the proposition received a “yes” vote in each of the Lake and Jamestown precincts.  In her ruling….Judge Adams cited two primary reasons for invalidating the election including “the statute under which the election was conducted does not authorize local option elections by precinct” and “that even had the local option election statute been properly invoked, the question put to the voters in the two precincts DID NOT substantially comply with the specific language required by the statute”.  The Appeals Court found no error in either conclusion and affirmed Judge Adams’ ruling.



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