The threat of a lawsuit isn’t sufficient pressure for Butler County to retain two part-time jury commissioner posts.

County Commissioner Bill McCarrier, board chairman, said at the commissioners’ meeting Monday he would not vote to keep the jobs past December.

“I’m not willing to change my vote,” McCarrier said. “I would not even second a motion.”

McCarrier and Commissioner Dale Pinkerton on May 23 voted to do away with jury commissioners, whose job is to select jury pools for civil and criminal court cases.

Commissioner Jim Eckstein, who supports keeping the elected posts, was absent from that meeting to attend a conference in Harrisburg.

McCarrier said he won’t change his mind, even after receiving a letter dated July 16 from Larry Thompson, president of the Pennsylvania State Association of Jury Commissioners, stating litigation would be avoided if the posts were preserved.

“We did nothing illegal,” McCarrier said.

Pinkerton agreed.

“I’m not going to change my vote,” he said.

The letter states the commissioners need to restore the posts Wednesday to avoid litigation at the county court level.

The jury commissioner association previously appealed the legality of state law Act 4, which Gov. Tom Corbett signed in May, enabling counties to abolish the posts,

That court case is pending in state Commonwealth Court.

Thompson said in an interview no one would sue the county if the commissioners would cut the posts next year, enabling the jury commissioners to fill out their full four-year terms.

“They were allowed to do it, but they did it the wrong way,” Thompson said.

He said the county should have waited for a ruling on the state court case before voting on the issue.

Eckstein attempted to put an item on the Wednesday meeting agenda to rescind the May 23 vote.

He said his colleagues are making a mistake by not trying to avoid a lawsuit, which would be filed by the three people who ran for the seats in the May primary.

“I think we’re going to lose,” Eckstein said.

County solicitor Mike English disagreed, saying there was nothing inappropriate with the May 23 vote.

“The action is in compliance with the current state of law,” he said.

Thompson, who did not attend the meeting Monday, previously said the lawsuit would be filed under the grounds that the May vote violated the separation of powers between the executive and judiciary branches of government.

He said the commissioners could have abolished the posts before the election season or next year, automatically setting the ending date with the completion of the next four-year term.

The plaintiffs would be Democratic Jury Commissioner Clinton Bonetti, Republican Jury Commissioner Jon Galante and Galante’s primary opponent, Pat Stirling.

Part of their argument is the commissioners circumvented the voters’ will by abolishing the posts two days after the primary.

“It’s just messy,” Thompson said.

Thompson, the deputy register of wills/clerk of orphans’ court, remains the association president despite being a former jury commissioner.

“They requested me to stay on board to not break continuity,” he said.

McCarrier stressed there is a significant difference between a primary and a general election, even though the jury commissioner candidates who win the primary become the de facto winners.

“A primary election is only a nomination,” he said.

Galante said after the meeting McCarrier was downplaying the significance of a primary.

“I think it’s little more serious than that,” Galante said.

Pinkerton said aside from Eckstein and the three people who ran for jury commissioner this year, no one he’s spoken to has opposed the eradication of the posts.

“They say, ‘Boy, I’m glad you’re doing it,’” Pinkerton said.

Eckstein said Butler is the only county that eliminated the posts during an election year.

“I think we’re the only county,” he said. “I don’t think there’s a precedent for that.”

Eckstein previously argued that discarding jury commissioners gives the appearance of impropriety because the only person left to oversee jury pool selection would be President Judge Thomas Doerr.

Pinkerton pointed out jury tampering is unlikely.

“The computer draws the names,” he said. “Attorneys pick juries.”

Thompson said there are no problems with Doerr, but the judge will leave office at some point, leaving the door open for potential abuse in the future.

According to Thompson, there were issues with Pennsylvania jury selections in the 1800s, resulting in the creation of jury commissioners.

“They had to have a reason,” he said.

When Pinkerton and McCarrier dispensed with the posts, they cited the reason being a cost savings to the county.

For 2013, the salaries and benefits of the two jury commissioners is budgeted at roughly $71,000.

County court administration maintains it can absorb the duties of the jury commissioners without increasing staff.

Tom Holman, deputy court administrator, said the jury selection process would not be impeded no matter what the outcome of any litigation would be.

“We support whatever decision the county commissioners and the appellate court make,” Holman said. “Court administration will respond or not respond accordingly.”

Eckstein said the topic of jury commissioners should remain on the agenda, so there could be further discussion Wednesday.

McCarrier said that would be pointless.

“Why keep regurgitating something? It’s a done deal,” he said.

Eckstein replied his fellow commissioners want to hide what they do.

“You don’t want transparent government,” he said.

Eckstein said the other two commissioners were insulting military veterans by not rescinding the May 23 vote because those people risked their lives to defend the right to vote.

He chided McCarrier for laughing at his comments. McCarrier said he wasn’t laughing at Eckstein.

“I’m laughing because your analogy is completely ridiculous,” McCarrier said.