Washington County Attorney Steve Zega made a point earlier this month about as plainly as it can be made.
"We have a problem. We need to address it. We need to address it publicly," said Zega. He was talking about lingering questions about bridge construction in Washington County, questions prompted by release of a video making the safety of a county bridge suspect.
Zega is also a former member of the Washington County Quorum Court. He ought to understand about as well as anyone the kind of questions county officials, most notably County Judge Marilyn Edwards and current Quorum Court members, are fielding from their constituents about this bridge issue.
Tempers have been flaring among the officials and continued to do so on Tuesday, when the court's Finance Committee wrangled over the bridge issue that will surely be a focal point this week, too, when the full Quorum Court meets on Thursday.
There have been calls for investigations, one by Judge Edwards to the local prosecuting attorney and the other by Justice of the Peace Eva Madison to the state attorney general.
Neither the prosecutor nor the attorney general has yet agreed to investigate; and, ultimately, neither may choose to do so.
That doesn't mean this issue shouldn't be investigated. There are too many unanswered questions about the condition of county bridges.
The issue most impacts the people who drive over those county bridges. Particularly concerned are people who drive heavy vehicles or put their children on school buses that may challenge the load limits.
This is a safety concern. It is serious. And the concern is -- and should be -- shared by the officials who are feeling the fire.
So, yes, the county does have a problem and needs to address it publicly. The sooner, the better.
The truth is, the county itself let the people know about the situation. It happened as soon as Edwards and others insist they first learned about the video.
It shows then-Washington County Assessor Jeff Williams pulling rebar out of a concrete bridge pier by hand. The site was the incomplete Stonewall Bridge west of Prairie Grove.
Clearly, the concrete had not bonded to the steel rebar, raising questions about how the bridge was being built and how safe it might be once construction was complete. Plus, if the construction there was questionable, might the same problem exist with other bridges?
The video of Williams was reportedly shot on Oct. 5, roughly a month before the general election in which Williams unsuccessfully challenged Edwards.
However, the video wasn't made public until months later, at least not widely public. Presumably, Williams shared it with some other people, maybe even tried to use it late in his campaign against Edwards. At least one media outlet reportedly had it in the last weeks before the election.
Nevertheless, the video didn't get wide viewing until last month. Attorney Zega received a copy as part of the discovery process in an ongoing federal whistle-blower lawsuit brought against Edwards and others.
George Braswell, a heavy equipment operator for the county, filed the suit, alleging construction of the Stonewall Bridge and another bridge deviated from the engineering design. He also alleged that Edwards, through his road department superiors, harassed him for discussing his concerns and retaliated against him for supporting Williams in the 2014 election for county judge.
A settlement conference is scheduled in the case later this month, but Zega said the lawsuit is independent of the county's obligation to address the bridge issue.
That video has now been broadcast repeatedly because Zega showed it to Edwards and others in the administration and Edwards showed it to the Quorum Court in a public meeting.
County officials knew to expect bad publicity with the release but they might not have predicted allegations of a cover-up or subsequent calls for Edwards' resignation.
Part of that reaction was stirred after Edwards ordered demolition of the unfinished Stonewall Bridge and her decision to restrict the weight of vehicles that may use the Harvey Dowell Bridge southeast of Fayetteville to three tons.
Zega said Friday that he is troubled by the allegations of a cover-up.
"If it were a cover-up, it must be the worst cover-up in the world," he said.
If the county were trying to cover anything up, he asked, why would Edwards have shown the video to the Quorum Court or released it to local media outlets?
Zega said the county is awaiting response from the prosecutor and the attorney general on the requests for investigation.
But, if they decline, he said the county will find another way to get answers to these lingering questions about bridge safety -- and more.
Until then, expect more of the sniping among Edwards and Quorum Court members, some of which is clearly politically motivated. The sniping may not resolve much, but it allows all the officials involved to show their concern.
Remember, too, that county judges in Arkansas are ultimately responsible for county roads and bridges, whether they directly involve themselves in road department management or not.
So, those what-did-she-know and when-did-she-know-it questions will continue to be hurled at the county judge.
Brenda Blagg is a freelance columnist and longtime journalist in Northwest Arkansas. Email her at [email protected].
Commentary on 04/12/2015