The Judge reinstated Denne Sweeney as Commander-In-Chief of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, but not before revoking suspensions Sweeney made in December and taking him to task. Meanwhile, the lawsuit against him proceeds. Read the story below from The Nashville Tennessean..
Thursday, 03/10/05
Judge reinstates SCV commander in chief
By LEON
ALLIGOOD
Staff Writer
Civil War
group divided over purpose, politics
COLUMBIA — Denne Sweeney, the controversial commander in chief of the Sons of Confederate Veterans who was ousted in court last month by a temporary restraining order, was given back his title yesterday during a court hearing.
But not before Chancellor Robert Jones took Sweeney, who lives near Dallas, to issue for taking his title too seriously.
''The evidence suggests that Mr. Sweeney, on occasion, has exceeded his powers at the detriment to the organization,'' the judge said near the conclusion of a seven-hour hearing.
Although Sweeney was renamed to the top post of the 30,000-member organization, the judge noted specifically that the commander in chief does not have the authority to suspend, either permanently or temporarily, any member of the General Executive Council. The GEC, which has members who are elected and appointed, acts as the group's supervising board of directors.
Sweeney will replace C. Anthony Hodges, a Chattanooga doctor who held the post for about a month.
The fight has been brewing for several years as the organization has become divided along ideological lines that pit ''progressives'' against ''traditionalists.''
The traditionalists contend that the SCV should remain non-political and should serve as a tool for living history exhibits for schoolchildren and continue to promote events such as Confederate Memorial Day. The traditionalists contend the lawsuit was needed to keep the organization from being unduly influenced by radicals who are in favor of Southern ''re-secession'' from the remainder of the country.
The progressive wing is more confrontational, vocal and political, believing the group should speak out when issues such as the Confederate flag and Southern heritage are raised. They call the other group, the ''old guard,'' stuck in their ways.
Tom Hardin, a Columbia lawyer representing several members of the ''old guard'' in a lawsuit against the commander in chief, told Jones that Sweeney suspended five GEC members at a meeting of the group last December.
''He did that to allow his supporters to have a quorum so that a number of items that he wanted passed could be voted on,'' Hardin said.
''We would not be here if Mr. Sweeney had not engaged in suspending people. Mr. Sweeney forgot that he works for the board of directors and took powers that he did not have.''
Ironically, the defense fired back a similar argument, alleging that three members of the GEC, who opposed Sweeney, organized a teleconference meeting Feb. 16 and ousted the commander in chief from office.
According to the SCV's bylaws, three members of the GEC can call a meeting of the group. The next day the trio filed a lawsuit in Maury County Chancery Court alleging that Sweeney had repeatedly violated the SCV constitution and bylaws.
Defense attorney Thor Y. Urness of Nashville said the meeting violated the group's rules because Sweeney and others were not given adequate notice about the phone session.
With a meeting of the GEC scheduled for three days later, Feb. 19, Urness questioned why the three board members could not wait until then to make their concerns known.
''The only reason they didn't wait for the 19th is they didn't have the votes then. What they did was completely over the top. There's a political process to accomplish what they wanted, but they chose to ignore it,'' Urness told Jones.
The defense lawyer played a tape of the Feb. 16 GEC meeting, during which it quickly became evident that two members did not know what the session was about and hung up once the group began voting on 13 resolutions, one of which included a motion to remove Sweeney.
Urness charged that at least two of the GEC members were ''tricked into making the call. A quorum achieved by trickery is not valid,'' the defense attorney said.
However, Hardin, the plaintiff's lawyer, said it was unreasonable for his clients to ''expect the commander in chief to call a meeting if he was going to be the subject of the meeting.''
In the end, Chancellor Jones, who had taken care during the proceeding to make sure he understood the leadership structure of the SCV and how it had operated in the past, said he could not condone how the Feb. 16 meeting was conducted.
''With considerable sympathy for why the three members of the GEC called the Feb. 16 meeting, this court cannot bless the very restrictive way in which it was done.
''All of us, as human beings, have been tempted at times to make the ends justify the means,'' he said.
At the same time he restored Sweeney to his post, he revoked the suspensions that Sweeney had arranged in December.
After the hearing, Sweeney shook hands with supporters. About 65 men attended the daylong court session. Most of them were dressed in suits, with lapel stickers that read: ''Sweeney is my commander in chief.''
Asked if he thought the organization could rebound from its recent division, he was optimistic.
''We're going to make a valiant attempt at it. That's for sure. We're going to see if we can work a little better together in the future,'' he said.
Sweeney said he will follow the judge's order and not suspend members of the GEC.
''I never had suspensions on the brain. All those suspensions were done for cause. Now the judge says we can't suspend people, and I won't suspend people. It's real simple.''
Mark Lea ''Beau'' Cantrell, a longtime member of the SCV and a member of the GEC who opposes Sweeney, said he, too, hopes the feuding is coming to an end. He said the problem was nothing less than a power play.
''My view, and the view of those who agree with me, is the driving force of the organization is the board of directors, the General Executive Council. It's my view that Mr. Sweeney believes the CIC (commander in chief) should be, in effect, an absolute dictator. But it can be healed. This is an institution. It's like a bank or church. They have problems, but we still have banks and churches,'' Cantrell said.
The first test of the reconciliation will occur April 23, when the GEC has its first meeting since the legal trouble. Tentatively, the meeting will be held in Charlotte, N.C.
Meanwhile, the lawsuit continues, although no date for the next hearing has been scheduled.
''We'll see what happens,'' Cantrell said.
Leon Alligood can be reached at 259-8279 or at lalligood@tennessean.com.