More than four months after filing a lawsuit to remove Sharon McBride from the South Bend Common Council because she hasn’t lived in the district she was elected to represent, the plaintiff is still waiting for a judge to take the case.
Plaintiff Brian Collier filed the suit in January, alleging McBride hadn’t lived in the city’s 3rd council district that she was elected to represent on the southeast side. He filed the case in the St. Joseph Superior Court where it was first assigned to Magistrate Andre Gammage.
Gammage recused himself because he has an affiliation with McBride. Then Circuit Judge John Broden did the same. That sent it to Special Judge William Wilson, who said he didn’t have a conflict of interest but Collier felt he did, so Wilson recused himself.
Wilson then assigned the case to Superior Court Judge Jamie Woods but then took it away from Woods under a state court order to better balance caseloads.
Next it went to Superior Court Special Judge Mark Telloyan, but he removed himself at McBride’s request. Then Magistrate Eric Tamashasky became the sixth judge to receive the case but he recused himself, citing his prior employment with the county, since McBride had been executive director of the county’s DuComb Center for community corrections before county commissioners fired her.
Broden last week ordered county Clerk Amy Rolfes to again randomly pick a judge from a list of remaining eligible judges and magistrates.