RIPLEY – The Common Council of Ripley held its biweekly meeting Sept. 16. The issue of whether or not city employees should be allowed to carry firearms caused heated debate within the council chambers.

“I don’t think we should ask our employees to check their constitutional rights at the door,” said Councilman Ed Moore.

Receptionists working at city hall typically collect large amounts of money each day from residents paying their bills.

Moore said that this money would make them a tempting target for robbers, and that to prohibit them from carrying weapons would be an invitation for criminals to “attack us. We’ve disarmed your victims.”
Opinions on the Council were sharply divided over the idea.

“If somebody comes to break into my house, I’m gonna shoot ‘em,” quipped Councilwoman Jackie Bailey.

“I believe in the Constitution, but I’m not sure this is necessary,” said Councilman John McGinley.

“I can’t see the benefit to that, honestly,” agreed City Attorney Kevin Harris. “I can only see the liability.” Harris said that a shooting committed by a municipal employee while on the job would expose the city to lawsuits by the people involved.

Chief of Police Jim Fridley said that police officers are the only city employees authorized to carry firearms, but that a person with a concealed weapons permit could carry a gun anywhere except schools and federal buildings such as the Jackson County Courthouse.

Two relevant sections are included in the City of Ripley Personnel Policies and Procedures Handbook. Section 701, “Employee Conduct and Work Rules”, prohibits “possession of dangerous or unauthorized materials, such as explosives or firearms, in the workplace”. Section 710, “Security Inspections”, states that the city “wants to have a work environment that is free of illegal drugs, alcohol, firearms, explosives, or other improper materials. The City of Ripley prohibits the possession, transfer, sale, or use of these materials on our premises.”

Councilman Moore proposed amending both of these sections to remove the word “firearms”. He insisted that city employees would not be required to carry weapons, but nor would they be prevented from doing so.

“An armed society is a polite society,” Moore said.

A vote on the amendment was deadlocked 3-3.

“I knew that was going to happen,” laughed Mayor Carolyn Rader. “I was almost praying that wasn’t going to happen.”

Rader cast the deciding vote in favor of amending the policies listed in the handbook; however, she stressed that the policies were not formal city ordinances, and that the matter would be further discussed at the next Council meeting.

Other Business

• Council donated $100 to the Rape Education Advocacy Council and Healing (REACH), a group dedicated to preventing sexual assaults and supporting victims. REACH will distribute “date safe” cards to Ripley High School students prior to homecoming; the cards list a dating bill of rights and a date rape hotline number, and will also contain 50 cents to make a phone call, if necessary.
• Council approved sponsorship of the second annual West Virginia Chocolate Festival by the city of Ripley. The festival will be held in Ripley April 4, 2009.
• Council approved Second Reading of the 2008 Water Bond Ordinance. A public hearing on the ordinance is scheduled Oct. 7.
• Council approved Second Reading of Article 1509 regulating the sale, purchase, and transportation of flammable liquids, clarifying the language of the ordinance and removing the penalty of 30 days in jail.
• Council selected a bid from West Virginia Paving, Inc. to pave Blankenship Drive, Highland Heights, Third Avenue, Charleston Drive, and the Walter Street extension for a cost of $93,235.
• Council established the date of Halloween trick-or-treating for Oct. 30 from 6:00-7:30 p.m. This was done to avoid conflict with the Ripley-Parkersburg football game scheduled for Oct. 31; Mayor Rader said that police would not be able to provide adequate security for both events on the same night.
• Because there are five Tuesdays this month, Council will not meet Sept. 30; the next regular Council meeting will be held Oct. 7.

story by Stephen Hill (shill@jccitizen.com)

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