Oldham County Conservative J.D. Sparks Runs for Oldham County 5th District Magistrate
Pewee Valley, KY (January 27, 2010) – Local resident J.D. Sparks filed registration papers to seek the Republican nomination for Magistrate for the fifth district in Oldham County, Kentucky. Long time resident of Oldham County, Sparks plans to be the “true conservative” on the ballot and feels that fiscal responsibility, smart growth and good schools are keys to a successful future for Oldham County. Sparks understands the balance necessary to grow Oldham County responsibly while maintaining the traditional, welcoming atmosphere that has enhanced its excellent reputation.
Politically, Sparks was nominated as an Alternate Delegate to the 2008 GOP National Convention. He has previously served as Precinct Captain, the Oldham County representative for the Fourth District Republican Convention Resolutions Committee and Legislative District Chair for the Jefferson County Republican Party. Sparks has been recognized multiple times by the Republican National Committee and served as the National Voter Registration officer for the Republicans Abroad while living in Japan.
In this election he plans to run as a long time conservative Republican and community supporter. He is a graduate of local leadership programs such as Leadership Oldham County, Oldham County Police Citizen’s Academy, LaGrange Police Citizen’s Academy and is currently participating in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Citizen’s Academy in Jefferson County.
Sparks is a United States Marine Veteran and currently serves as a nationally recognized newsletter editor for the Marine Corps League Detachment 729 in Kentucky. Among his civic involvement, he works with the United Way in reviewing programs and funding for Oldham County and surrounding areas, has worked on committees for the Red Cross, KIDS Center for Cerebral Palsy and serves as the regional contact for the National Rifle Association’s legislative efforts.
Sparks currently serves as an executive vice president in the finance industry, where he assists publicly traded firms with SEC filings and Public Relations. His company works to bring new business opportunities to the region and has been recognized in recent years as a “Best Small Business” in the Incredible Awards and as a “High Impact Company” by Louisville Chamber of Commerce (GLI). He has two of the largest online networking groups in the area (Greater Louisville Networking and Semper Fi Network on linkedin.com) and works to support the growth of business in the area.
Sparks has the support of political leaders in the area as well as national figures. War hero Scott O’Grady, who was shot down in Bosnia and featured on the cover of Time magazine, has endorsed Sparks.
Sparks is a graduate of Loyola University Chicago and Jefferson Community College. He resides in Pewee Valley with his wife Yuko and two sons, where he is active in their Cub Scouts and Soccer teams.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
MY APOLOGY TO MAGISTRATE BOB LESLIE
In my article of January 26, 2010 I discussed the firing of Oldham County Code Enforcement Office Mitch Nobles. During that discussion I stated that six of the magistrates voted to fire Mich Nobles and that two abstained. By saying that I inferred that Magistrate Bob leslie also voted to fire Nobles. The fact is Bob Leslie was not present during the executive session during which that decision was made.
Please allow me to take this opportunity to set the record straight and offer my apology to Magistrate Bob Leslie.
Please allow me to take this opportunity to set the record straight and offer my apology to Magistrate Bob Leslie.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
NOW DO YOU BELIEVE THAT I AM NOT RUNNING FOR OFFICE IN 2010
Over the past three years I have spent a lot of time attending various public meetings conducted by different local government agencies. I have also played a large role in opposing many local government proposals. Additionally, I have started this web site in order to expose the illegal and ill conceived actions of local government.
Because of my efforts many people claimed that I was trying to increase my public exposure in order to seek public office in 2010. Most of the people making those accusations were people who would not do anything for the public unless it benefited them.
Well, the filing deadline for 2010 has come and gone and I did not file for any office. I hope that my naysayers will start trying to contribute to the community instead of criticizing my motives. I intend to continue to uncover public corruption and to expose the actions of elected officials to the public. I will also expose illegal activities of non elected public officials. The time has come for the people of Oldham County to regain control of the local government and to make the government work for them.
Because of my efforts many people claimed that I was trying to increase my public exposure in order to seek public office in 2010. Most of the people making those accusations were people who would not do anything for the public unless it benefited them.
Well, the filing deadline for 2010 has come and gone and I did not file for any office. I hope that my naysayers will start trying to contribute to the community instead of criticizing my motives. I intend to continue to uncover public corruption and to expose the actions of elected officials to the public. I will also expose illegal activities of non elected public officials. The time has come for the people of Oldham County to regain control of the local government and to make the government work for them.
Monday, January 25, 2010
WANTED: ATTORNEY WILLING TO SWIM UPSTREAM
Duane Murner has been in office just slightly over three years and there has been no shortage of complaints filed against him that was related to personnel actions. And, his won/loss record on the proceedings does not look favorable. Will the county need another lawyer who is dedicated to defending Murner? Perhaps there should be a sign on the courthouse door that reads, “Wanted: Full-Time Attorney Willing to Swim Upstream.” It might also be wise to hire another person for human resources to assist Judge Murner in his personnel decisions.
First, there is the issue of the alleged refusal, of the county, to hire Bruce Gentry for a county police officer position because he has a military obligation. From reading the lawsuit and other information that I have obtained I doubt that the county has a prayer of winning that lawsuit. However, the final disposition of that lawsuit is not likely to come about until Murner is out of office.
The second instance involved the county police department’s attempt to fire Officer Tom Douglas. Fortunately for Douglas the Police Merit Board overturned that decision. That decision surely saved the county from itself as a lawsuit was almost certain. However, the county was still required to repay Douglas for time lost and that amounted to several thousand dollars.
The latest issue is the firing of Mitch Nobles, the county Code Enforcement Officer. Nobles filed a lawsuit against the county and in my opinion will win that lawsuit. In this instance most members of the Fiscal Court can share the blame with Judge Murner as six of them voted to fire Nobles (Magistrates Scott Davis and David Voegele abstained from voting because they claim that they did not have sufficient information upon which to base a fair decision).
Again I ask, when will the magistrates grow some backbone and quit following Murner like blind sheep? There is NO excuse for their actions. Taking a person’s employment from him is not something that should be taken lightly but that seems to be what happened in this instance. The fact is, the public has not held the magistrates accountable for their actions. It is time that they are held responsible.
Then there are the two lawsuits that Magistrate Scott Davis filed against Judge Murner – one for having a secret meeting and the other for the Judge’s failure to release public information. Murner lost both of those lawsuits. I suspect that there are more to come.
After all of these legal problems I would hope that people are very careful when they characterize the Kinser administration as giving outsiders a bad impression of Oldham County. The Murner administration smacks of being very cavalier regarding employee rights and the public’s right to know. This administration reminds me of a “banana republic dictatorship.” The next year cannot go too fast for the public. The sooner that Murner is out of office the better off the public will be. The question then becomes, can the next judge clean up the mess that will obviously be left?
First, there is the issue of the alleged refusal, of the county, to hire Bruce Gentry for a county police officer position because he has a military obligation. From reading the lawsuit and other information that I have obtained I doubt that the county has a prayer of winning that lawsuit. However, the final disposition of that lawsuit is not likely to come about until Murner is out of office.
The second instance involved the county police department’s attempt to fire Officer Tom Douglas. Fortunately for Douglas the Police Merit Board overturned that decision. That decision surely saved the county from itself as a lawsuit was almost certain. However, the county was still required to repay Douglas for time lost and that amounted to several thousand dollars.
The latest issue is the firing of Mitch Nobles, the county Code Enforcement Officer. Nobles filed a lawsuit against the county and in my opinion will win that lawsuit. In this instance most members of the Fiscal Court can share the blame with Judge Murner as six of them voted to fire Nobles (Magistrates Scott Davis and David Voegele abstained from voting because they claim that they did not have sufficient information upon which to base a fair decision).
Again I ask, when will the magistrates grow some backbone and quit following Murner like blind sheep? There is NO excuse for their actions. Taking a person’s employment from him is not something that should be taken lightly but that seems to be what happened in this instance. The fact is, the public has not held the magistrates accountable for their actions. It is time that they are held responsible.
Then there are the two lawsuits that Magistrate Scott Davis filed against Judge Murner – one for having a secret meeting and the other for the Judge’s failure to release public information. Murner lost both of those lawsuits. I suspect that there are more to come.
After all of these legal problems I would hope that people are very careful when they characterize the Kinser administration as giving outsiders a bad impression of Oldham County. The Murner administration smacks of being very cavalier regarding employee rights and the public’s right to know. This administration reminds me of a “banana republic dictatorship.” The next year cannot go too fast for the public. The sooner that Murner is out of office the better off the public will be. The question then becomes, can the next judge clean up the mess that will obviously be left?
Saturday, January 23, 2010
MORE PEOPLE HAVE FILED TO ENTER POLITICAL RACES
I understand that Mike Logsdon, a Republican, has entered the race for the eighth district magisterial seat. He will be facing incumbent Bob Diebel. Logsdon, who is a local realtor should be a formidable opponent for Diebel. However, his ties to developer Bob Jones may cause some people to be leery of him. Only time will tell if he tries to distance himself from Bob Jones or if he is a supporter of Jones.
Apparently Bob Dye has made it official - he will challenge Rick Rash for the Republican nomination for the seventh district magisterial seat. As I previously said, Rash only defeated Dye by sixteen votes in 2006. At that time Dye carried the Glen Oaks area but Rash carried the Briar Hill and the Spring Hill neighborhoods. However, a lot has happened since the last election. The most notable thing is the lawsuit filed by the people in Spring Hill and Briar Hill over the proposed Brentwood subdivision.
My sources tell me that many people in Briar Hill and Spring Hill are very unhappy with Rick Rash as he has supported development, appointments of pro-development members to the Planning and Zoning Commission, and has received political contributions from developers. Rash has also voted YES on every tax and fee increase this term and has been a puppet for Judge-Executive Duane Murner to use as needed in accomplishing his missions.
If my calculations are correcet he has easily lost enough votes in those subdivisions to allow Dye to win the nomination. Rash has been campaigning hard as he knows that he is in trouble. However, it is difficult to cover up your record and to convince people that you will be any different in the future than you have been for the past sixteen years.
I have also heard that there may be an opponent for Julie Barr. Thus, I am anxiously awaiting the filing deadline for people to file for different races. Again, stay tuned!
Apparently Bob Dye has made it official - he will challenge Rick Rash for the Republican nomination for the seventh district magisterial seat. As I previously said, Rash only defeated Dye by sixteen votes in 2006. At that time Dye carried the Glen Oaks area but Rash carried the Briar Hill and the Spring Hill neighborhoods. However, a lot has happened since the last election. The most notable thing is the lawsuit filed by the people in Spring Hill and Briar Hill over the proposed Brentwood subdivision.
My sources tell me that many people in Briar Hill and Spring Hill are very unhappy with Rick Rash as he has supported development, appointments of pro-development members to the Planning and Zoning Commission, and has received political contributions from developers. Rash has also voted YES on every tax and fee increase this term and has been a puppet for Judge-Executive Duane Murner to use as needed in accomplishing his missions.
If my calculations are correcet he has easily lost enough votes in those subdivisions to allow Dye to win the nomination. Rash has been campaigning hard as he knows that he is in trouble. However, it is difficult to cover up your record and to convince people that you will be any different in the future than you have been for the past sixteen years.
I have also heard that there may be an opponent for Julie Barr. Thus, I am anxiously awaiting the filing deadline for people to file for different races. Again, stay tuned!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
MAGISTRATE SCOTT DAVIS FILES TO RETAIN HIS POSITION ON THE OLDHAM COUNTY FISCAL COURT
On Wednesday, January 20, 2010 Magistrate Scott Davis filed to seek the Republican nomination for the sixth district magisterial seat of the Oldham County Fiscal Court. Already in the race is Kevin Eldridge who also seeks the Republican nomination and Rick Garlock who is seeking the Democratic nomination.
The race promises to be one of the most interesting races in the county. Magistrate Scott Davis has an extremely good following among his constituents while Kevin Eldridge will probably be backed by the developers and the current County Judge who has also been heavily funded by the developers.
The election will determine if the sixth district seat will remain the "people's seat" or whether it can be bought by money. Eldridge has been Judge Murner's "waterboy" throughout his administration. First, he led the Vision Council for the purpose of preparing the public for higher taxes and fees. Then Murner hand picked him to lead the stormwater district in order to set the ill concieved stormwater district into motion. Even Eldridge now has admitted that the stormwater district is not necessary. Frankly, I do not know what Eldridge can offer the voters other than more taxes and higher fees. Prior to the Vision Council Eldridge served on the Planning and Zoning Commission that he also chaired. While there, in my opinion, he was more than generous to developers. On one occasion I watched him refuse to allow people from outside the county to testify against a developer who was also from outside the county but was seeking approval for a development in Oldham County. The developer had presented evidence that was derived from ouside the county. Is that a double standard or what? I had never witnessed such an injustice in an administrative hearing.
Other than Magistrate Bob Leslie's district I believe that every other magistrate is likely to have competition. I understand that Bob Dye picked up "filing papers" to run for the seat currently held by Rick Rash. In the 2006 primary Rash only edged out Dye by sixteen votes. That means that Rash could not afford to lose an additional nine votes. Further, I am pretty certain that there will be another candidate for the office.
Frankly, I believe that the competition is good. The public needs a choice. This may be the time for magistrates to accept responsibility for all of the tax and fee increases that they have voted for.
Certainly the time has come for more updates on this site. I expect the campaign to be very active in many of the races - not just the races for magistrate. Stay tuned!
The race promises to be one of the most interesting races in the county. Magistrate Scott Davis has an extremely good following among his constituents while Kevin Eldridge will probably be backed by the developers and the current County Judge who has also been heavily funded by the developers.
The election will determine if the sixth district seat will remain the "people's seat" or whether it can be bought by money. Eldridge has been Judge Murner's "waterboy" throughout his administration. First, he led the Vision Council for the purpose of preparing the public for higher taxes and fees. Then Murner hand picked him to lead the stormwater district in order to set the ill concieved stormwater district into motion. Even Eldridge now has admitted that the stormwater district is not necessary. Frankly, I do not know what Eldridge can offer the voters other than more taxes and higher fees. Prior to the Vision Council Eldridge served on the Planning and Zoning Commission that he also chaired. While there, in my opinion, he was more than generous to developers. On one occasion I watched him refuse to allow people from outside the county to testify against a developer who was also from outside the county but was seeking approval for a development in Oldham County. The developer had presented evidence that was derived from ouside the county. Is that a double standard or what? I had never witnessed such an injustice in an administrative hearing.
Other than Magistrate Bob Leslie's district I believe that every other magistrate is likely to have competition. I understand that Bob Dye picked up "filing papers" to run for the seat currently held by Rick Rash. In the 2006 primary Rash only edged out Dye by sixteen votes. That means that Rash could not afford to lose an additional nine votes. Further, I am pretty certain that there will be another candidate for the office.
Frankly, I believe that the competition is good. The public needs a choice. This may be the time for magistrates to accept responsibility for all of the tax and fee increases that they have voted for.
Certainly the time has come for more updates on this site. I expect the campaign to be very active in many of the races - not just the races for magistrate. Stay tuned!
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