Saline County alcohol votes can be counted

Circuit Judge Grisham Phillips has reversed his original ruling and now says all votes cast on the question as to whether alcohol can be sold in Saline County will be counted. The decision came yesterday (Monday) after the Arkansas Supreme Court ordered that 720 signatures, not counted originally, be included as part of the approval process.

On Friday, October 31, in a four to three decision, the Supreme Court ruled Phillips must reconsider the legality of the petition. During Monday's hearing Terry Brown, a deputy county clerk, admitted the clerk's office stopped verifying signatures when they had 73 signatures more than the 25,580 needed to put the question on the ballot.

Voters in Saline County are being asked if they want to allow the sale and manufacture of alcohol within Saline County.

In September a lawsuit was filed by three Saline County residents who were able to make the case to Judge Phillips to overturn 159 signatures, reducing the total amount on the petition to 25,497; 83 signatures short of the amount needed to be on the ballot. During the hearing on Monday Judge Phillips said he doubted there wouldn't be 83 legal signatures out of the remaining 720.

The group circulating the petition is Our Community, Our Dollars. After Judge Phillips ruled the petitions were invalid the group had the Saline County clerk verify the remaining pages and found there were enough good signatures to still put it on the ballot. But, Phillips let his original ruling stand because Our Community, Our Dollars  did not question the number of signatures within ten days of the clerk's verification as required by law.