FEDERAL HEIGHTS — Newly appointed Councilman James King was booted from his seat Monday night after a background check revealed he is a convicted felon.
King, named to fill a vacant seat in November, was not at his expulsion hearing.
Mayor Joyce Thomas said King told her he would be late to the hearing because of a work-related problem. But a majority of the council refused to continue the hearing and King was voted out, 6-0.
Council members had little comment after evidence against King was presented by the city prosecutor.
Convicted felons are not allowed to serve as council members or mayor under the city’s charter. “We either abide by the city charter or we don’t,” Councilman Dale Sparks said late last week.
The Monday night hearing was called after the police chief learned King had a felony menacing conviction.
King declined to comment before the hearing. But at a Dec. 3 council meeting, King explained the circumstances of the conviction and defended his honesty.
King said he punched a man in 2001 at a McDonald’s parking lot in Arapahoe County over a family dispute.
Police charged King with felony menacing, but he later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor and received two years of probation.
But, King said, he was laid off and he fell behind on his child-support payments, violating his probation. Authorities reinstated the felony menacing conviction in 2003.
Resident Kay Jones on Monday night praised the council for removing King.
