CANYON CITY — John Day City Council President Dave Holland has filed a criminal complaint against Councilor Ron Phillips over the unauthorized removal of a sign from city property, but Sheriff Todd McKinley says no charges will be filed.

Phillips removed a sign advertising a future location for the Grant County Library from a 2.1-acre plot of land along an asphalt path near the Seventh Street extension at the base of Davis Creek Park on July 20. The removal came following an informal discussion with Grant County Court members.

The sign removal caused a firestorm within John Day city government, with some city staff asking Phillips if he worked for the county or the city.

Councilor Chris Labhart called for Phillips to resign during a contentious special meeting on Monday, July 31. Labhart also threatened to file an ethics complaint against Phillips but was told the matter was outside that body’s jurisdiction. The next step was the theft complaint filed by Holland with the Grant County Sheriff’s Office.

“It is owned by the city, the city bought it and put it there,” Labhart said of the sign. “When the trail system and the park were inaugurated, the city wanted to have something to show the people where possibly a new library would be put.”

For his part, Phillips has been apologetic, admitting during the July 25 city council session that he “probably did a stupid thing” in removing the sign. Phillips returned the sign to the John Day Public Works Department and then reinstalled it.

That is not enough for some members of the community, city staff and some councilors who are wondering what authority Phillips had to remove the sign as the matter never came before the council for a vote. John Day Mayor Heather Rookstool remains adamant that there was no discussion about the removal of the sign prior to Phillips removing it.

Sheriff McKinley declined to take action on the matter following a preliminary investigation, saying that the act didn’t meet the definition of theft. “To commit ‘theft,’ a person must act with ‘intent to deprive another of property or to appropriate property to the person or a third person,’” McKinley said in a press release Tuesday, Aug. 8.

The sheriff cited ORS 164.015 and case law to support his decision.

McKinley then referenced John Day’s distribution of powers within Chapter 2, Section 6 of the city charter, which states: “Except as this charter prescribes otherwise and as the Oregon Constitution reserves municipal legislative power to the voters of the city, all powers of the city are vested in the council.”

McKinley said the charter language could be interpreted as giving Phillips the authority to act in the manner he did.

“Based on the definition of theft, and information that this issue was already presented at a July 25, 2023, City Council meeting in John Day, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office will be taking no action on this matter and considers it closed and refer it back to the City of John Day Council,” the press release stated.