Judge rules in favor of councilor

'PAC of one' had no standing to bring case in first place, but could pay for fees

By RICHARD HANNERS - Whitefish Pilot

Political intrigue and a last-minute witness added drama to Monday's courtroom hearing about Whitefish city councilor John Muhlfeld's eligibility in last November's municipal election.

While the lawsuit was not completely settled on Monday, Flathead County District Court Judge Katherine Curtis dissolved the temporary restraining order she granted Jan. 4 and denied a request for preliminary injunction that would have prevented Muhlfeld from being sworn in on Monday.

Rick Blake and the political action committee Common Sense in White-fish Government filed a lawsuit last week to stop Muhlfeld from being seated on the council. Blake claimed Muhlfeld did not meet the required residency requirements to run for city council.

Blake, however, who is the PAC's sole member, lives outside the city limits on Big Mountain Road and had no standing to bring the lawsuit.

Curtis allowed the hearing to proceed on the residency issues while Whitefish resident Mark Van Nyhuis drove down from Whitefish to assume Blake's role as the plaintiff.

Both Van Nyhuis and Blake, however, were not able to articulate on the stand how they would be irreparably harmed if Muhlfeld was seated on the council. Van Nyhuis said he couldn't recall if he voted for Muhlfeld, but he recalled voting for a complete slate of candidates.

When Blake said he was concerned that residents in the "doughnut" area — the city's extraterritorial planning jurisdiction — were not allowed to vote but could be told what to do by the city, city attorney John Phelps noted that that situation would not change whether Muhlfeld was seated or not.

Blake, who testified he didn't want Muhlfeld to lose the election even though his PAC supported other candidates, also said he never hired a private detective to investigate Muhlfeld.

"I didn't know about it until I read about it in the newspapers," he said.

Blake's attorney, Duncan Scott, questioned Muhlfeld and his fiancee, Stephanie Sunshine, in detail about the living arrangements at his Whitefish home, a touchy personal realm that set off several objections by Muhlfeld's attorney, John Lacey.

Scott subpoenaed two witnesses who said they were reluctant to testify against Muhlfeld. Diane Smith and Bick Smith, who are not related, cited separate instances where they claimed they heard Sunshine say she would have to move to Muhlfeld's home in Whitefish if he won the election.

Diane Smith said it was her opinion at the time she allegedly heard Sunshine's statement at the Rising Sun Bistro that residency was determined by where a person slept. Smith, who is a lawyer and has worked as a lobbyist in Washington, D.C., also said she had a good memory of Sunshine's alleged statement because she had considered running for city council herself but lives outside the city limits.

In the course of Bick Smith's testimony, the court learned that Van Nyhuis was also present during a candidate forum at the Golden Agers Senior Citizens Center when Sunshine allegedly made the same statement about moving to Muhlfeld's house in town.

Van Nyhuis was called to the stand, where he supported Bick Smith's testimony.

But Sunshine, in earlier testimony, said she had no recollection about making the statements. She said it was always her intent to move into Muhlfeld's Whitefish home once his roommates moved out and the house had been remodeled with "a woman's touch."

Curtis said she disagreed with Lacey's claim that Muhlfeld's intent to keep or change residency was the overriding concern. Other evidence was important to determine Muhlfeld's credibility, she said.

While she wasn't prepared to rule on the how the state's 60-day requirement applied, Curtis did note that Muhlfeld owned a home in Whitefish, kept a bedroom there, took responsibility for maintaining the home, received mail there and had property there. He also used his Whitefish address for a driver's license and, most importantly, for his voter registration.

"A person can only have one residence," Curtis said. "You have to lose one to gain another."

Curtis said she decided against issuing a preliminary injunction because the plaintiff's case was not likely to succeed, leaving the issue of irreparable harm unresolved.

She also noted that Muhlfeld lived in Idaho for 32 days while working, but nobody was claiming he was a resident of Idaho. She will issue a final ruling at a later date.

Phelps withdrew his motion to dismiss Blake and his PAC from the lawsuit so they could be held responsible for attorneys fees. Scott said there was no objection.

About 30 people showed up to support Muhlfeld, including Rep. Mike Jopek, D-Whitefish, and former Whitefish mayors Andy Feury and Cris Coughlin.

"It's a pretty good turnout for a powder day," Coughlin noted loudly in the packed courtroom.

New council chooses McGrew over Askew

A new mayor and three new city councilors were sworn in on Monday in the Whitefish City Council chambers.

The council chose former city-county planning board chairman Martin McGrew over former councilor Turner Askew in an open vote.

The two had tied for third place in last fall's municipal election. A motion by Shirley Jacobson to decide the tied vote by a coin toss died for lack of a second.

Amid much applause, and after he delivered a bouquet of flowers to his fiancee, who was sitting in the audience, John Muhlfeld was sworn in as councilor.

Muhlfeld won a court case earlier in the day where his eligibility in the election had been questioned (see page A1).

The third councilor to be sworn in on Monday was Ryan Friel. He is new to city government, but he garnered the third-most votes in the election.

Former mayor Mike Jenson was sworn in as the city's new mayor. He said his hope was to bring "calm" to the city.

After taking the helm, Jenson quoted a line from "Desiderata," the 1927 poem by Max Ehrmann: "And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should."