Davis is one of three Republican candidates vying to replace retiring Cobb Superior Court Clerk Jay Stephenson.
Marietta attorney Alan Manheim made the request in a June 5 letter on behalf of his client, Barry J. Schwartz, who lives in the Cumberland area.
Manheim points out in his letter that election rules call for candidates seeking that position to certify the name of who they will appoint as deputy clerk in the event of being elected.
Manheim said Davis listed the existing chief deputy clerk, Elva Dornbusch, as her running mate. Yet one of the other three candidates for superior court clerk, John Skelton of Kennesaw, already listed Dornbusch as his running mate.
“Since Ms. Davis never even asked Ms. Dornbusch about being listed as her chief deputy clerk and because Ms. Dornbusch would never accept being same if Ms. Davis is elected, this constitutes a fraud upon the electorate,” Manheim writes. “Moreover, since Ms. Dornbusch is the chosen chief deputy clerk of Mr. Skelton and has agreed to serve and run for office with him, it would be confusing to the electorate and quite misleading for Ms. Davis to attempt to defraud the electorate into believing that Ms. Dornbusch would be her chief deputy clerk. In effect, listing Ms. Dornbusch as chief deputy clerk for both candidates usurps the good will and drawing power of Mr. Skelton having Ms. Dornbusch on the ticket with him.”
Manheim also objects to Davis listing her occupation as “lawyer” in her qualifying papers.
Davis was disbarred by the Supreme Court of Georgia earlier this year for failing to properly represent a client.
“She cannot practice law in Georgia and her profession, business and occupation cannot be as a ‘lawyer’ in this state,” he writes. “To suggest otherwise by Ms. Davis is likewise a misleading and perhaps fraudulent misrepresentation or lack of truthful representation.”
Davis dismissed both objections.
“So I would appoint the existing deputy. I don’t see anything that says you can’t do that,” Davis said. “Second of all, it goes on to say that they object to me putting ‘lawyer’ on that disclosure that we filed. Now, I have a law degree, I’m looking at it on my wall right here, so I’m a lawyer. I don’t understand their objection. I’m admitted in Pennsylvania, that’s where I went to law school. I’m admitted in Maine, that’s where my mom lives, and I’m admitted in Hawaii.”
Davis said Manheim is misinformed.
“It may be, and I don’t know this, it may be that if Ms. Dornbusch says the people she’s rooting for, say they don’t win. She might quit,” Davis said. “That’s fine, then you’d have to move on to somebody else.”
Davis said she spoke with Dornbusch prior to qualifying for office “and told her that in the event I would be elected I would like to appoint her.”
“Did she have any problem with it? She said, ‘no.’ She did tell me — she didn’t keep it a secret — she said, ‘you know, I’m supporting John,’ and I understood that, but if John is elected then he would appoint her. … Both of us can’t be elected, so I don’t see it as a problem.”
Dornbusch disputes Davis’ account of that conversation.
Dornbusch said Davis called her office on May 22 to ask if it was legal to put the name of the existing deputy court clerk – her — as Davis’s running mate.
“I said, ‘if you’re going to qualify, are you qualifying as a Democrat or a Republican,’ and at the time she didn’t know it was partisan, and I said, ‘well, that’s a question you need to ask the party, whichever party you’re qualifying,” Dornbusch said. “We never discussed John Skelton. She never said anything about John Skelton to me. And I never said that I didn’t have a problem in the event that she prevailed and that I would support her or I would work for her. ... She never offered me the position.”
Dornbusch said she was outraged by Davis’s actions.
“I feel like she took my identity, she took my name, and she didn’t have a right to do that,” Dornbusch said. “She never offered me the job. … But no, I will not work for Ms. Davis. I have no intention of working for her or being her chief deputy or the janitor in the office.”
The Board of Elections will consider the challenge to Davis being on the ballot at 4 p.m. on Monday at 736 Whitlock Ave. in Marietta.
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“who said what to whom.”
Ms. Dornbusch admits engaging in a conversation with Davis on May 22 about qualifying for office for chief deputy clerk. Why would she (Dornbusch) ever consider talking with Davis in the first place knowing she is on with John Skelton’s ticket??
Ms. Davis state that She (Dornbusch) did tell me —she didn’t keep it a secret — she said, ‘you know, I’m supporting John,’ and I understood that”
Ms. Dornbusch then back tracks and further down in this article. “We never discussed John Skelton.
What we have here is:
Dornbusch got caught entertaining the possibility to be on two tickets both with Skelton and Davis trying desperately to do anything to keep her county chief deputy job. Is now trying to do some damage control and denying it all. (dirty)
Davis a (disbarred attorney) still is vying after all these years to get a county job period! (nasty)
Ladies and I say that mildly this is NOT Fulton County.
Dornbusch: “I said, ‘if you’re going to qualify, are you qualifying as a Democrat or a Republican,’ and at the time she didn’t know it was partisan, and I said, ‘well, that’s a question you need to ask the party, whichever party you’re qualifying,” Dornbusch said
Davis: “Did she have any problem with it? She said, ‘no.’ She did tell me — she didn’t keep it a secret — she said, ‘you know, I’m supporting John,’ and I understood that,”
The clerk office is NOT allowed to furnish any legal advice period. Unauthorized Practice of Law is a misdemeanor.
Perhaps fraudulent misrepresentation or lack of truthful plummets on both Dornbusch and Davis.
I have to agree that it MUST be all about Elva Dornbusch trying to keep her job but to publicly put down a county janitorial position is downright trashy!
As for Joan Davis, read all the stories on her from past attempts to gain some office.
And she is wrong, she cannot claim to be a lawyer if she has been disbarred, at least not in the stat of Ga.
At the beginning of the year she announced to MDJ that she is running for the Clerk of Superior Court and list John Skelton as her Chief Deputy Clerk. Two weeks afterwards she goes back to the MDJ and states “that for “HEALTH REASONS” she is withdrawing her name. Then John Skelton publicly announces that he is running for Clerk of Court and list Elva Dornbush as his chief deputy clerk.
So in today’s front page paper, she Ms. Dornbusch admits to talking with Joan Davis and states, Dornbusch said “Davis called her office on May 22 to ask if it was legal to put the name of the existing deputy court clerk – her — as Davis’s running mate.”
Ms. Dornbusch to public disclosure of immoral or grossly improper behavior and disgrace is totally unacceptable engaging in any action or becoming involved in any matter that reflect discredit upon the County and ignorance of any county policies regulations or rules should not justify your violations. Cobb County should dismiss your employment today!!!