Pension Board ruling may go on to Nov. 12
By Mike Steely
steelym@knoxfocus.com
A multi-hour hearing before Chancery Judge John W. Weaver Friday morning saw arguments on both sides with the judge asking if the pension board will agree to have a hearing on one of the specific retired employees on November 12th.
The pension board attorneys said that the law director’s office didn’t have the authority to bring an action against it or the retiring sheriff’s department employees. Because of a conflict of interest the law director could not handle the case and hired Egerton, McAfee, Armistead, and Davis to represent the county.
Judge Weaver questioned both sides on the matter and obviously was not ready to make a ruling. The pension board is asking that the case be dismissed.
Melissa Carasco for the outside firm told the court that former employees who have already retired will continue to get their retirement that was calculated to include unused vacation days during the two years prior to leaving the department.
Seven retired employees and the pension board are seeking to make the “plus vacation days” continue to be added to upcoming retiring employees. The law department’s attorneys are saying that the pension board violated the rules by including the vacation days in the calculation.
