A group of Cass County republicans has filed a lawsuit seeking to remove two top county officials from office. In a petition filed Friday in Cass County district court, seven plantiffs allege their fellow Republicans, County Attorney James Barry and Sheriff Larry Jones, are guilty of corruption and misconduct in office. Democrat Ron Fieldmeyer, attorney for the plantiffs, says that both Jones and Barry were informed late Thursday afternoon that a lawsuit would be filed if they did not agree to resign by noon Friday. Barry indicated immediately that he was not going to resign. There was no immediate comment from Jones. Both men are aware of the suit, but neither has been officially served with notice. Fieldmeyer says it could be nearly a month before the trial begins. Meanwhile, the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation is looking into the activities of Jones and Barry to determine if any crimes have been committed. It’s expected their report will be released in two weeks, but Fieldmeyer says his clients didn’t want to wait that long to file the suit.
