Court declares vacancy in Justice of the Peace District 1; governor to accept applications

The Van Buren County quorum court adopted a resolution declaring a vacancy in the office of Justice of the Peace for District 1 following the resignation of David Holcomb. The resolution directs the county to file the vacancy notice and to send a copy to the governor's office to begin the appointment process.

Presiding remarks explained the application process: individuals must be residents of District 1 (described in the meeting as the west side of Highway 65, covering the city limits and nearby neighborhoods such as School Hill and Sedgefield) and should apply online with the governor's office. The court said the notice had run as a legal advertisement in the local paper in the two weeks before the meeting and that, if the application window is met, a replacement could be appointed as early as the next month's appointments.

Court members asked procedural questions about the appointment term and confirmed that the appointee would fill the remainder of the term and the next full term where applicable; the resolution passed on a roll-call vote.