The Unexpected Effects of County Commissioner Meeting Drama (Opinion)

A few days ago, we wrote about the incident where a County Commissioner candidate was arrested after criticizing Commissioner President John Barr and refusing to leave after the Commissioners called for a recess. Apparently, during that recess another person present in the room, Justin Holder, alleges that he was assaulted by County Commissioner Derek Harvey, during the county’s efforts to clear the room.

We requested associated body camera footage regarding the incident, but the footage does not capture the incident, only Commissioner Harvey verbally requesting that Holder leave the room.

From what we have been informed, allegedly Harvey may have placed his hand on Holder’s shoulder to request he leave – an act by itself not typically considered by most people as assault. However, there are claims that Holder’s shoulder was already injured, and that Harvey’s actions may have re-injured the shoulder. And while the court has filed charges based upon Holder’s statements, it’s highly likely in my opinion that unless Holder can prove that Harvey had malicious intent (which I don’t personally believe he did), those charges will likely be dismissed.

However, this incident, as well as all of the other recent drama at County Commissioner meetings, such as continuously having to clear the room at the start of meetings to remove Shaun Porter, may start to have a chilling effect on participation at county meetings, as witnessed at the recent Comprehensive Plan public hearing. After all, who wants to attend a public meeting when you might get assaulted, arrested, or other accusations of misconduct, just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time?

And meanwhile, the latest County Commissioner agenda for June 10, 2025, appears to have completely removed all citizen participation. Another loss for residents to be able to interact with their elected officials.

Unfortunately, I don’t see an end in sight for this, not any time soon anyway. The ongoing war between Porter, Holder, and the county government will likely continue until the 2026 election cycle is concluded, and only then if Porter and Holder are satisfied with the results of the election. There is however a positive side to this, in that more people appear to be paying attention to County Commissioner meetings than ever. Unfortunately, the good things the county is doing, such as preparing for the 250th Anniversary celebration or the upcoming September Emergency Preparedness Expo might get lost in all the drama.

With things continuing to escalate, to the point that we now have criminal charges against a County Commissioner and a County Commissioner candidate, we really, truly need some sort of an intervention, perhaps a mediator or equivalent, to sit with both parties and try to find a peaceful resolution.

Alternatively, maybe we just need to give all involved parties boxing gloves, have a grand event at the baseball stadium, and sell tickets with proceeds going to a local charity. Involved parties get to act on their frustrations with each other, and we’d likely have a sold-out crowd benefiting a local cause. Win-win for everyone. I am joking about this of course, but it would be a sold-out crowd.

In all seriousness though, the current situation is embarrassing, and I hope to see a resolution to it sooner than later. The increasing abuse of the legal system by all involved parties has got to stop.

Opinion article by Ken Buckler, all opinions are his own and do nor reflect those of our clients or sponsors.

This article was updated to reflect that WCSO was not involved in the complaint against Harvey, and further updated to include the body camera footage and details that the citizen participation part of the County Commissioner meeting on June 10, 2025, has been excluded.

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