County Attorney Tom Goff identified the constable Friday as Charles "Chuck" Gibson of Clarkson, elected in 2002 in District 1.
Goff said a routine check by Clarkson Policeman Dan Peterson turned up Gibson's name on the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) list "in either Indiana or Illinois, and the Fiscal Court's response has been to withhold payment of Gibson's car insurance and his use of blue lights on his vehicle."
He said Fiscal Court also covers all the county constables' bond requirements, which are up for renewal this year.
Goff said a felony conviction in Kentucky or another state would require either a full pardon or a restoration of rights that can be granted only by the state's governor.
"I feel that Gibson probably has been granted restoration of rights, which would allow him to run for the office and to vote," Goff said. He said that Gibson was not being paid for any state-listed duties of a constable during the background check.
Goff said the fiscal court's action "probably is the best option, because a court proceeding would take more time than Gibson has left in office." Constables will be elected in 2006.
He said that if the rights had not been restored, "then it is a case of perjury, because of the voter registration in which a person signs a statement saying they are not a convicted felon."
Constables have wide-ranging powers, some of which are outdated or occur so rarely that they are moot, but District 1 Magistrate Steve Henderson said they are especially useful "in a county like this one in which regular law enforcement officers have very heavy workloads. They can serve court papers, for example."
Henderson said Gibson "assured me that he lives in District 1," but his address in the telephone directory lists him with a Salt River Road address, which is in District 4.
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