Chavis receives new impeachment charges

For the second time this semester, Student Government (SG) Attorney General Cordell Chavis faces impeachment charges.

A memo submitted Tuesday by USF student Brian Goff calls for Chavis’ impeachment on the grounds of malfeasance, incompetence, misfeasance and abuse of power.

“I felt that the first impeachment fell through the cracks. But I felt that there was enough that had happened since then to warrant a new impeachment,” said Goff, a freshman majoring in biomedical sciences.

The SG senate formed a committee at Tuesday’s meeting to investigate the charges. Senators Jeremy Burns, Daniel McInerney and Christopher Randall were elected to the committee.

The committee won’t meet until the spring semester, said senate President Jennifer Belmont.

Senate President Pro Tempore Matthew Diaz said the charges in the memo of impeachment were “black and white.”

“The memo of impeachment basically said that the students thought that the student representative did something wrong and outlined the major points that they believe he violated,” Diaz said.

According to SG statutes, malfeasance is the “commission of a wrongful or unlawful act involving or affecting the performance of one’s duties.”

In the memo, Goff said Chavis violated several SG statutes.

Statutes define “incompetence” as the lack of qualities necessary to fulfill the duties of a position.

According to the memo, Goff said Chavis “is unable to fulfill the duties of attorney general.”

Chavis’ charges of abusing his power and misfeasance refer to the “performance of a lawful action in an illegal or improper manner or with an improper or corrupt motive,” according to SG statutes.

“I hope they do the right thing this time and they don’t sweep it under the carpet,” Goff said.

In September, USF student Christopher Leddy and former SG senator Richard Shockley brought forward impeachment charges against Chavis on the grounds of incompetence and malfeasance.

The first impeachment committe did not move forward with its investigation.

Chavis declined to comment.

Additional reporting by Anastasia Dawson