Allegheny County Council votes to hire solicitor to handle affairs

PITTSBURGH: County Council agreed Tuesday night to hire a solicitor, saying sometimes it needs its own lawyer rather than one it now shares with the county executive.

Council voted, 9-6, to hire attorney John F. Cambest for a fee to be determined later.

At-large Councilman Dave Fawcett, R-Oakmont, argued before the vote that the Allegheny County Home Rule Charter doesn't allow council to hire a general solicitor, sparking a vicious debate with Council President John DeFazio, D-Pittsburgh.

'I object to the hiring of a solicitor,' Fawcett said. 'The Home Rule Charter said council is to hire professional staff on a case-by-case basis only.'

DeFazio argued, however, that the charter does not specifically prohibit hiring a solicitor and that another lawyer who served for almost a year as council's legal adviser did so without much complaint.

'Do you need me to spoon-feed it to you?' DeFazio asked Fawcett after the two repeated their arguments over the issue several times. 'I think you're wrong. The language of the charter does not clearly state we cannot hire a solicitor or an adviser.'

Fawcett then complained that DeFazio was out of line and asked that he relinquish his seat as chairman if he intended to continue making remarks like that.

Other Republican council members, including Tom Shumaker, repeated the 'spoon-feed' catch phrase throughout the meeting, drawing groans and giggles.

Other council members cooled the debate, saying the council needed to hire its own solicitor because county solicitor Terry McVerry answers to County Executive Jim Roddey, which may create a conflict if council also relies on him for legal advice.