Student Body Treasurer John Taylor Willis and the sponsoring senators on the resolution to impeach him are expected to present testimony Tuesday* in front of the Senate committee on Government Relations and Oversight (GRO).
During this initial hearing, GRO will decide whether probable cause exists to believe that the charges against Willis have merit. The charges are neglect of duty and abuse of power.
According to the resolution, Willis failed to meet multiple deadlines, on one occasion causing a delay in the publishing of the Fall 2017 Appropriations Packet, which outlines for student organizations the process by which they can obtain funding from Student Government.
Molly Mueller, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which publishes the packet, declined to comment.
Willis said in a written statement to Technician that he looks forward to presenting evidence to GRO during the initial hearing on Tuesday and “shutting down [the sponsors’] allegations and the alternative facts presented within this bill.”
“The sponsors of this bill have not once directly addressed their concerns with me or my advisors, and thus they have little to no understanding of my job responsibilities or my efforts to fulfill my duties,” Willis said in the statement.
The sponsors of the resolution responded with a written, joint statement to Technician.
“The job responsibilities of the Student Body Treasurer are outlined in Student Body Statutes and Treasurer Willis is not fulfilling them,” the sponsors said in the statement.
Mitchell Moravec, Student Senate president, notified Willis and the sponsors of the resolution, along with the rest of Student Senate, that no physical evidence would be permitted at the initial hearing on Tuesday.
“No physical evidence nor witness/character witness testimony may be admissible during the preliminary hearing phase,” said Mitchell Moravec, Senate president.
Moravec explained in a statement to Technician that the purpose of this decision, which was made in consultation with GRO chair Ryan Dunn, a second-year studying political science, is to avoid “oversights” that “may hinder the overall goal of objectivity, transparency, and fair justice.”
During the hearing, the sponsors are expected to “outline and clarify their case and ability to prove their accusations are correct,” according to Moravec’s statement. Similarly, the defense is expected to “present an initial defense against the charges and specifications of the Sponsoring Senators.”
The hearing is also expected to consist of discussion between GRO committee members, the defense and the sponsors to clarify specifications of the charges in the impeachment resolution.
GRO is expected to reach a decision on whether to move forward with the impeachment process at the conclusion of the hearing. This will occur if the committee finds there is probable cause to believe the charges laid out in the resolution have merit.
As of Monday evening, corresponding senator of the bill Adam Schmidt, a second-year studying civil engineering, said that he and the other sponsors were in the process of finalizing the testimony they would be presenting at the initial hearing.
Kate Puricz, a second-year studying fashion and textile management, is a sponsor of the resolution and a member of GRO. Puricz said that she will participate in deliberation as a member of GRO and present evidence as one of the sponsoring senators, but she will abstain from voting.
“This doesn’t exercise any privileges any other senator wouldn’t have if they were presenting a bill in their own committee,” Puricz said.
The hearing will be held at 7 p.m. in the governance chamber of Talley Student Union. All impeachment proceedings are open to the public.
Technician will be live-streaming and live-tweeting the proceedings of the preliminary hearing of Willis’ impeachment. You can follow us on Facebook and Twitter for updates on the hearing.
* Editor’s note: the article has been corrected to reflect the proper date of the initial hearing.
