The Arkansas Court of Appeals on Wednesday upheld three misdemeanor convictions of a Monticello Republican running for a seat in the state House of Representatives.
Jim Hall, a candidate for the House District 9 seat in two coming elections, was found guilty in April 2015 of two counts of harassing communications and one count of harassment for exchanges he had with his ex-wife, her attorney and his former pastor, according to court documents.
Under state law, the misdemeanor convictions do not disqualify Hall from running for or serving in office. He was sentenced to a year in jail with all but 90 days suspended. The Court of Appeals had not issued a mandate ordering Hall to begin serving his sentence, according to court records.
Hall said he has already filed an appeal with the state Supreme Court. He said he will continue running for House District 9, despite a call from a Republican Party official to quit.
The District 9 seat was vacated last month by the death of state Rep. Sheilla Lampkin, D-Monticello. A special election to fill the remainder of her term will be held the same day as the Nov. 8 general election. The next General Assembly takes office in mid-January.
Hall won the March Republican primary to be the nominee in the general election. Republicans declined to enter a candidate in the special election, and Hall filed as a write-in candidate. Democrats selected former Army officer and Department of Human Services attorney LeAnne Burch to run in both the general election and the special election.
"In view of the Arkansas Court of Appeals affirming Jim Hall's conviction of harassment and harassing communications, it is now obvious that he should focus on putting his personal life in order rather than running for public office. His actions do not reflect the values of the Republican Party of Arkansas. Therefore, I call on Jim Hall, House District 9 nominee, to resign his candidacy," said Republican Party of Arkansas Chairman Doyle Webb.
Hall argued in his appeal that his court-appointed lawyer, Omar Greene, was hard to reach and ineffective and that a circuit court judge denied his constitutional rights by refusing to allow Hall to fire his attorney.
According to court transcripts included in his appeal, Greene told the judge that the problems went both ways and that he had trouble reaching his client. Hall, Greene said, would often call while he was in court on other cases.
Hall has made numerous claims that his former wife's family is involved in a conspiracy against his campaign. Earlier this month, the state Board of Election Commissioners denied his request to have election monitors sent to Drew County during the November election.
Metro on 08/26/2016