By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
Two new city council members and the city’s new municipal court judge will be among the city of Atmore officials who will be sworn in at the city council meeting to be held next Monday, November 2.
The meeting will be a little different than normal council sessions. It will begin at 6 p.m. instead of 4 p.m., and it will take place in city hall’s auditorium instead of Council Chambers.
“The later time will give everybody a chance to get here,” explained Mayor Jim Staff, who will be sworn to his third term. “And we usually have it (the swearing-in ceremony) in the auditorium because everybody’s family comes. It will be all of us; we will all have to be sworn in.”
Staff pointed out that another difference this year will be in the person who does the swearing in. Usually, that’s done by the sitting municipal court judge. But Kaurean Reynolds, the first person of color ever invited to rule over Atmore Municipal Court, will have to be administered the oath of office. That will be done by the man Reynolds replaced.
“Kaurean can’t swear the others in, so we’ve had to ask Todd Stearns to come fill in for him,” the mayor said.
Stearns served as city court judge until he was appointed in August to replace Judge Dave Jordan on the Escambia County Circuit Court bench.
Also being sworn in on Tuesday are new District 3 representative Eunice Johnson, a Masland Carpets shift worker who became in August the first black female to ever win a seat on the council, and Shawn Lassiter, general manager for Gulf Transport who in August won a four-person race, without a run-off, for the council’s District 4 seat.
The council members who were re-elected to office — Webb Nall (District 1), Jerome Webster (District 2) and Chris Harrison (District 5) — will also be sworn, as will City Clerk Becca Smith, who will begin her eighth four-year term in office.