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Attorney Michael Dailey, representing the 16 citizens who petitioned the Westmoreland County court to make the appointment, said the petition will proceed to a motions hearing Wednesday before Judge William J. Ober.

"We'll be asking the judge to, of course, take jurisdiction over the issue and however he decides is best to proceed in filling the vacancy in council, which we believe still exists," Dailey said.

On Wednesday night, council appointed Bankoske to fill the unexpired term of Jerry Bruck, who resigned May 19. The appointment, however, was not made within 45 days of the vacancy occurring, as stipulated in Murrysville's home rule charter. That is the reason for the citizens' petition.

"It's not about advancing one candidate over another candidate," Dailey said. "This petition, from our perspective, is simply upholding the charter. The charter is quite clear; they've got 45 days.

"We are really just trying to uphold the integrity of the home rule charter. We don't have an agenda despite what others may think."

Murrysville Solicitor George Kotjarapoglus, who will represent council before Ober, said the petition is valid.

"It's not a matter of having a case," he said. "It's a process that's there, and I don't dispute that they filed it and it gives the court a chance to intervene."

Council did make an effort to fill the vacancy prior to Wednesday's votes, he said. Twice on July 7 and once on July 14, five of the six members met and voted on filling the vacancy. Councilman Bob Brooks was traveling out of the country and could not participate. Four votes are needed to make the appointment.

On July 7, council narrowed the field from six candidates interviewed to two, Bankoske and Jeff Franke. The balloting on those two ended in a 3-2 deadlock twice that night, and the result was the same at the July 14 meeting.

Brooks attended Wednesday's meeting and broke the deadlock by voting for Bankoske, but he said neither candidate was his first choice.

"The purpose of that (charter) section is that if there is an impasse on council to fill a vacancy, then it could go to the court," Kotjarapoglus said. But with council's action Wednesday, an impasse no longer exists and court action is not necessary, he said.

"(The petitioners) are saying, 'We don't care that you exercised a will to do it; you didn't do it in the 45 days, so we're going to drag this out for another three months,'" Kotjarapoglus said.

"So, if the object is to get a body on council to conduct affairs, then this (petition) is counterproductive."

That council did not even schedule a vote on an appointment before the July 3 deadline -- when Brooks was still available to vote -- shows a certain disrespect for the charter, Dailey said.

Dailey's view is that from the moment the petition was filed on July 19, the matter was taken away from council to decide and placed in the hands of the courts. That is what he told council Wednesday.

"In light of what happened at council last night, we will ask the judge to issue an order delaying anyone from being sworn in," Dailey said. "Basically we're asking the judge to put a hold on the action that council took last night."

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