Late Monday, Councilman Joe Hatch proposed plucking three lawyers from the DA's portfolio to give two to the mayor's office and one to the council. He and colleague David Wilde quickly were dressed down by Yocom, who later acknowledged he resorted to trial lawyer tactics.
"I feel like Custer here at Little Bighorn," Yocom protested loudly, repeatedly rapping a podium with his closed fist. "If you try to take my job away from me . . . you can expect a battle in court."
Yocom initially lost his cool when Wilde suggested the DA's office was not always nonpartisan. Wilde, who refused to apologize, backed Hatch's proposal and argued the council deserves an attorney who is "loyal to us, and us alone."
By Tuesday afternoon, relative calm was restored. Yocom made a public apology - "That was not our finest moment," he conceded - and Hatch scaled down the scope of his threat.
Instead of reassigning three DA lawyers, the County Council voted, 7-2, to appoint a single legislative counsel out of the general fund for $120,000. Ostensibly, that hire would serve as legal aide to the nine-member body, while the district attorney's office would retain its legal teeth.
Hatch, who admitted Monday evening that he had ambushed the DA, defended the council's decision to appoint a "buffer."
"We'll have a person on our side of the equation who will filter all the issues," he said. And, Hatch argues that by spending the $120,000 for the position, the county "is going to get paid back in spades" by helping the council make sound spending decisions.
Yocom countered that one attorney cannot possibly match the resources of his cadre of lawyers.
Agreeing with the DA, councilmen Cort Ashton and Marv Hendrickson worry the new council job is not well defined. And they insist the council has been well served by Yocom's legal team.
"It's just not a necessity," Hendrickson said.
County insiders worry the move could create conflict. What, for instance, would differing opinions mean over hot-button issues like domestic-partner benefits?
"Introducing more attorneys into the mix doesn't help," agreed Chief Administrative Officer Doug Willmore, insisting the mayor and DA have a good relationship.
County Assessor Lee Gardner opposes the hire - it takes effect Jan. 1 - noting he also frowned on a failed effort by former Mayor Nancy Workman to place the DA's civil division under the mayor's control.
"It escapes me why we need this," he said. "We should let government function the way it was intended to function."
For his part, Yocom cautioned that the council attorney will face a confrontation if he or she attempts to usurp the DA's authority.
"That could cause a real constitutional crisis," he warned.
djensen@sltrib.com
