Journalists, newspaper owner face contempt charges in name dispute
By The Associated Press
06.13.02
INEZ, Ky. — A judge has scheduled a hearing for two Eastern Kentucky journalists and their newspaper’s owner to explain why they shouldn't be held in contempt for continuing to publish under the banner “Mountain Citizen.”
Martin Circuit Judge Daniel Sparks had ordered the Mountain Citizen, a weekly newspaper in the heart of the Appalachian coalfields, to stop using its name after a local official who had been the subject of critical coverage claimed its corporate identity.
Owner Lisa Stayton, Publisher Roger Smith and Editor Gary Ball continued printing the newspaper under the name despite the judge's order and now their attorney said jail time is possible.
"That's something that is at the discretion of the court," said David Fleenor, a Lexington trademark attorney representing the newspaper. "I don't think we're just flouting his order."
The contempt hearing is scheduled for June 19.
Sparks issued a restraining order last month against Mountain Citizen Inc. The name was acquired by the former Martin County Water Board Chairman John Triplett, the subject of several critical stories, after the paper allowed incorporation papers to lapse.
Triplett, who was out of the office and unavailable for comment for this report, has been unwilling to say why he wanted the newspaper's name or what he plans to do with it, but he has spoken at length about what he considered the newspaper's unfair reporting.
Smith said the newspaper has published several stories about problems with Martin County's water treatment plant and its distribution lines.
The Mountain Citizen hadn't filed paperwork with the secretary of state's office in two years and was deemed an inactive corporation, which put the name up for grabs.