Clerk of Court Todd Maness has withdrawn his lawsuit, filed a month ago, in which he accused retired Superior Court Judge Jim Webb and current District Court Judge Beth Tanner of conspiring to oust him from office. The lawsuit, filed on Dec. 20, alleged claims of conspiracy, blatant misconduct, abuse of process, slander, and infliction of emotional distress.
Fayetteville attorney Michael Porter, representing Maness, filed paperwork on Jan. 16 to drop the case against Webb, followed by a dismissal of the case against Tanner. The case against Webb was dismissed “with prejudice,” preventing it from being refiled in the future.
“The matter between Maness and Jim Webb has been resolved,” said Porter in a statement to Sandhills Sentinel. “He did so in the hope that they could work together for the betterment of the citizens of Moore County and the proper administration of justice.”
Maness was officially summoned by Judge Tanner on Dec. 13 to address concerns about a number of clerical issues and appeared at the subsequent court hearing on Dec. 19. The initial order from Tanner accused Maness of criminal contempt and failure to obey order of the court.
The presiding judge, Judge Gordon Miller, delayed further action to allow Tanner time to secure legal representation. In the following days soon after, Maness filed a suit against both Webb and Tanner.
Maness’ lawsuit alleged a conspiracy between Webb and Tanner to discredit him professionally and have him removed from office. The suit claimed collusion to undermine Maness.
The clerk of court’s complaint offered a lengthy string of allegations against Tanner.
“To further their conspiracy to cause harm to Plaintiff, Defendant Tanner began acting outside of her jurisdiction and authority as a District Court Judge to bait Plaintiff [Maness] into pushing back against her unlawful conduct so that she, at Defendant Webb’s behest, could accuse Plaintiff of not performing his duties,” states one passage in the complaint.
The complaint asserts that Tanner’s actions have caused “great harm to Plaintiffs personal and professional reputation, and has caused him severe emotional distress.”
However, shortly thereafter, a series of legal motions ensued, prompting Maness and his attorney to withdraw the case in January.
Webb and Tanner both responded to the lawsuit, hiring attorneys who filed motions to dismiss and sought protective orders. Arguments were made to strike parts of the complaint, deeming them irrelevant or scandalous.
In a statement issued to Sandhills Sentinel, attorneys Tom Van Camp and Mike Newman, on behalf of the defense, said, “As our court filings made clear, the complaint was an ill-advised scorched earth campaign by Mr. Maness. His complaint contained nothing more than rank rumors, ridiculous gossip, and intentional mudslinging. None of his claims against Judge Webb had any merit. We are pleased that Mr. Maness chose to promptly dismiss his suit with prejudice.”
Sandhills Sentinel reached out to Tanner’s attorney but has not heard back from him at this time.
Court calendars available at nccourts.org indicate that Tanner’s future court responsibilities have been administratively reassigned from Moore County to neighboring Hoke County.
The contempt of court case was voluntarily dismissed on behalf of Tanner in late January.
To read Sandhills Sentinel’s article on the contempt of court hearing, please click on the below link/image.
~Written by Sandhills Sentinel reporter Abegail Murphy.
