Secectmen Chair's recall public hearing set for Saturday, but logistics unclear

Chairman Charles Russell moves to turn off the YouTube live stream without a vote during a recent selectboard meeting. (YouTube caputure)

Editor's note: The polls for the Oct. 23 recall vote on Selectboard Chair Charles Russell will be open from 6 a.m.-8 p.m. An earlier version of this story had incorrect times.

LEBANON, Maine - Lebanon voters will decide in 35 days if they want to keep President Trump, but before that - in just 22 days - they'll decide if they want to keep current Selectboard Chair Charles Russell, who is headed for a recall vote on Oct. 21.

Russell's recall movement was led by former state rep and Lebanon selectwoman Karen Gerrish, who calls him the corrupt leader of a group that has turned meetings into "circus shows" that include an alleged assault and people being silenced during meetings "if they are not a favored voice of this chairman."

"The evidence is blatant and damning," she said on a Sept. 15 video posted on her Facebook page that can be viewed here.

In the video she also condemns Russell for voting on his own recall during selectboard meetings in recent weeks.

On Sept. 17 he voted with Selectmen Jeff Adams and Butch Lizotte to censure Selectwoman Corinna Cole for a "To the editor" letter that was published in The Rochester Voice two days earlier. In the letter she criticized the informal discussion during the Sept. 10 meeting in which Adams was given the task by Russell to find a moderator just minutes after Adams gave a speech praising Russell for his exemplary work as selectboard chair.

In the letter Cole accuses Adams of bias toward Russell and against the recall movement, and therefore should not have been allowed to pick a moderator.

Now it appears a moot point as the selectboard last Thursday voted on another moderator.

To read Cole's Sept. 15 letter click here.

To watch the portion of the Sept. 17 meeting during which Selectmen Russell, Adams and Lizotte voted to censure Cole go to the 1:44 minute mark of the meeting, which can be viewed here.

Gerrish also criticized the board for using selectmen's meetings as a "soapbox" to show support for Russell.

Meanwhile, the public hearing is set for this Saturday at 10 a.m., just four days from now. The public hearing will be held via Zoom, however, Selectman Paul Philbrick said on Monday they were still not sure what form the hearing would take, where the principals would be and what would be the format for public participation.

The Rochester Voice tried to reach out to Maine attorney Richard Spencer of Drummond/Woodsum who is said to be moderating the debate, but he is yet to return a call.

The vote to recall Russell will be held on Oct. 21 with poll hours from 6 a.m.-8 p.m