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The City Commissions regular meeting took place Tuesday, September 6, 2022 at 5:30 p.m. in the Cordele City Hall Courtroom. Chairman Joshua Deriso was in attendance with commissioners Vesta Beal Shephard, Isaac Owens, and Wesley Rainey. The agenda included speaker Maurice L. King, Jr., P.C. who spoke on the matter of Commissioner Royce Reeves, Sr. “The law says that basically that if he is suspended, he must be tried at the first term, I think he may have been indicted in August 2021, and basically the Cordele judicial circuit has had at least 3 jury trial terms, at least 3, it might be more, and I think the last term was August 3 through August 19,” said King, Jr. “there were two weeks in August, so our position is that he is eligible to come and sit, and take his seat.” Georgia Governor Brian Kemp suspended Commissioner Royce Reeves in August because Reeves Sr. was charged with two counts of obstruction of an officer, violation of oath by a public officer, criminal trespass, and disorderly conduct. Reeves Sr. was elected as the District 3 city commissioner in 2014. “We are going to ask the board to vote as to whether or not your going to allow Mr. Reeves to take his seat because we don’t think the suspension was ever proper,” said King, Jr. Chairman Joshua Deriso initiated the decision to bring Reeves Sr. back to the commission board. “I believe the decision is on us, the people are here, the meeting is here, we can sit our commissioner back tonight if we wanted to, that is my belief,” said Deriso, “because we all have laws to abide by, I’ve been arguing for months that the governor wasn’t in his authority to do what he did, the people of Ward 2 desperately need representation, and the people vote for us to make the right decision down here in Cordele, Georgia.” Commissioner Issac Owens makes a motion to seat Commissioner Reeves, Sr. back on the board to represent Ward 2. Commissioner Vesta Beal-Shephard seconded the motion. “The motion was properly carried,” said Deriso, “commissioner Reeves will take his seat back.”  Commissioner Reeves, Sr. will take his seat at the next City Commissioners meeting scheduled for Tuesday, September 20, 2022 at 5:30 p.m. at Cordele City Hall Courtroom.