“We’re giving you a sledgehammer.” – Crystal Jessee on help in fighting ExoticRidge
Hawkins County Commissioner Robbie Palmer said it best.
“They got their slugger, and now we have ours.”
When the Commissioners refused a settlement offer from ExoticRidge Crypto Company back in February, not even voting on an agreement that would have let the largely unwanted cryptocurrency mining operation locate in Bulls Gap, it was obvious that ExoticRidge would take the matter to court. Indeed, not only did they do so, but on March 31, got the Beacon Center of Tennessee, a non-profit but decidedly pro-business organization, to fight for them.
On Monday, Hawkins County received an offer from a legal heavy hiiter to take the fight to Beacon and ExoticRidge. The Southern Environmental Law Center, a Charlottesville, Va. based nonprofit with more than 110 attorneys on staff, visited Monday’s meeting and offered its services pro bono to defend the county against Beacon.
Rumors that the county would soon be securing representation had been going around for a while, but the official offer was made Monday after local attorney Crystal Jessee, who has led the fight against ExoticRidge since the company announced its plans last fall, addressed the board early in the meeting. She referred to ExoticRidge’s suit from the Beacon Center as a ‘hammer,’ then said “Ladies and gentlemen, we’re giving you a sledgehammer.”
With that, she introduced George Nolan, the Director of SELC’s Tennessee office; and senior attorneys Trey Bussey and Joe DeGaetano, who came from Nashville to attend the meeting.
Jessee credited Commissioners Palmer and Josh Gilliam with helping get the SELC involved in the case, and then Nolan, a native of Dixon County, took to the podium and spoke briefly about what the SELC does.
“We cover the entire state…doing what we can to help communities protect the pristine landscapes and natural treasures that our state enjoys,” he said. “One issue that’s a big concern for us is how fast things are changing in our rural communities, and the fact that we’re seeing out-of-state interest come in and change things in a way that’s bad for nature and bad for the rural communities that live there.
“This ExoticRidge Bitcoin mining situation certainly got our attention, and we’ve noticed the fact that the county is now being sued by an organization called the the Beacon Center that’s representing ExoticRidge.”
He told the board that they would have to approve the SELC representing the county, and then the SELC trustees would have to approve their involvement. He stated that if the SELC represented Hawkins County, it would be on a pro bono basis and would cost nothing to the county. One commissioner asked how the organization receives any money, and Nolan replied that they were a 501(c)3 nonprofit that is supported by donations.
There was no item on the agenda about SELC, and neither Mayor Mark DeWitte nor County Attorney Allen Coup seemed ready to vote on anything before receiving further information; Coup asked Nolan for a copy of the organization’s pro bono agreement and was told he would receive it. DeWitte said the board would vote on accepting the offer of representation next month.
Palmer, who represents the part of Hawkins County that ExoticRidge wants to locate in, was enthusiasic about the possibility of SELC representing the county.
“We believe the county government should have the final say in the health, safety, and convenience of its citizens,” he said. “We’re excited that this law firm is interested in talking to the county and working with the county.”
The Review will have more details on the meeting and other business transacted in a later story.
