Jrmar Jefferson is suing the City after being disqualified from running for mayor, but he reportedly filed his initial lawsuit in the wrong court.
Jefferson previously alleged to The Dallas Express that the City Secretary’s Office blocked him from being on the ballot in May even though he fulfilled the necessary requirements.
He announced his intention to file a lawsuit over the matter at the beginning of March.
However, last week, a county district judge declined to rule on Jefferson’s case and explained that state election law dictates a higher court is needed to rule on cases involving municipal elections.
“It seems to me that a plain reading of the election code says you’re supposed to be in the Supreme Court or the Court of Appeals,” said Judge Eric Moyé, as reported by The Dallas Morning News.
Moyé reportedly explained that Jefferson filed an amended lawsuit on Wednesday morning at 6 a.m. and failed to give the City the required three-day notice.
His initial lawsuit listed the City of Dallas as the defendant, while the amended suit was filed against City Secretary Bilierae Johnson.
Last Tuesday, Jefferson hired attorney Paul Davis as his legal counsel.
“He wasn’t able to get counsel until yesterday,” Davis told the judge, per The Dallas Morning News. “He called everybody in town, and nobody wanted to go against the mayor.”
Davis said that Jefferson did not follow proper procedure in filing the lawsuit because he had no attorney at the time.
Davis explained that, according to case law, it is more proper to sue Secretary Johnson than the City because it was Johnson who determined Jefferson did not qualify to be on the ballot.
In a statement to The Dallas Express, Jefferson said, “I understand why so many individuals have lost faith in our legal system.”
“I was devastated when no Democratic lawyer or organization agreed to represent me,” he continued. “I had to file pro se, and my life has been turned upside down. It was extremely challenging to find a lawyer who would accept the case.”
Jefferson described Davis as a “courageous attorney” and a “constitutional conservative” willing to “stand against the injustice committed against me and those that want to see change in the City of Dallas.”
“I believe that Judge Eric Moyé believes in justice and that liberty is not an inconvenient truth,” he continued. “My attorney located legal authority in his research that authorizes Judge Moyé to have jurisdiction over the case.”
“We have just filed an amended petition with that authority and are requesting a new temporary restraining order hearing as soon as possible,” he told The Dallas Express.
Jefferson reiterated his belief that “no candidate should run unopposed” and says he prays “that the people will elect a mayor who cares about them” once more.
The Dallas Express reached out to the City of Dallas and the City Secretary’s Office for comment regarding Jefferson’s case multiple times but received no statements by the time of publication.