Attempt to remove Van Buren mayor heads to court

VAN BUREN, Mo. — An attempt to remove the mayor of Van Buren will go to trial.

Circuit Judge David Evans ruled Thursday against a request to dismiss the case against Mayor Michael Hoerner, who was elected to the post in April.

“The court agrees that the local prosecutor has set forth sufficient allegations in his quo warranto petition to challenge the candidate’s qualifications,” Evans wrote in a judgment filed at the Carter County Courthouse in Van Buren.

The case will be set for trial after conferring with attorneys for both sides, Evans said.

Hoerner’s attorney, Richard Bascom, had argued during a May court appearance only another candidate could bring a complaint against Hoerner, and the time frame to do that had passed.

Evans wrote in his ruling a 2012 Missouri Supreme Court case concluded a quo warranto petition filed by a local prosecutor or attorney general is an appropriate remedy.

“In making its decision, the Supreme Court

noted that it had previously affirmed the ouster from office of a candidate for failure of the candidate to pay his taxes prior to the election,” Evans said.

Hoerner is accused of signing a candidate affidavit swearing he did not know of any unfiled or unpaid state income taxes.

Signing the affidavit under false pretenses carries penalties of perjury and can make a candidate ineligible to serve in office.

Hoerner mailed his 2010-2014 state income-tax filings March 4, according to court documents filed by Bascom.

He owed more than $2,500 in outstanding taxes and accumulated interest that were not paid at that time, attorneys representing the state said in court in May.