February 12, 2008
Wisconsin
Wisconsin
On Tuesday, Calumet County voters will decide whether to vote one of their county supervisors out of office.
A special recall election is set to take place, and one of the driving forces behind this recall is the wind.
The signs of opposition are in place on some streets around the county.
Lee Bjork, who wants Jerry Criter removed, said, “We want honesty, we don’t want conflict of interest, and this recall is our only way of reaching that point.”
For the past several years, Criter supported the idea of putting wind turbines on his land – something developers would pay property owners to do.
Bjork says the conflict of interest comes when Criter cast votes on the wind turbine issue, since he could gain financially from it.
And that, the recall group says, means Criter broke the State’s ethics code when he voted on turbine issues the past several years.
But Criter says the allegation is false. He points to an investigation by the Calumet County district attorney which proved that it was false.
In a letter to Criter, D.A. Ken Kratz said Criter did not violate the State ethics code because Criter is allowed to vote on amendments to existing ordinances. Further, Criter says since 2006, he sat out nearly every vote on the issue.
“There’s been a lot of lies and a lot of things said out there in the last six months that aren’t true,” Criter told us.
And Criter hopes people think about that while they’re in the voting booth on Tuesday.
“I just hope the people will get out and vote for what they think is the truth,” Criter said.
By Adam Aaro
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2008/02/12/calumet-countys-wind-driven-recall-election/