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and only just moved to the district that hell represent. Eastham has no children attending the schools that hell help to run. In addition, he’s the brother of one of the three Trustees responsible for the appointment of School Board members. Reportedly, Trustee Granville Eastham abstained from voting on his brother’s appointment, meeting the letter—if not the spirit—of conflict of interest laws.
Eastham’s appointment is in sharp contrast to Judge Rayner V. Snead’s decision last year. In considering nominations for the Trustees in July, 1978, Snead declined to appoint Mrs. Ruby Cannon because he felt her husband's business association with School Board member Paul Nichols created the “potential” for a conflict of interest. If Robert Eastham had been on the board at that time, we seriously doubt that Judge Snead would have appointed his brother as Trustee.
Finally, the Trustees’ action on Monday night violated the Virginia Code and all accepted procedural rules. Chairman C. E. Johnson announced the School Board appointments as the results of a vote taken in an earlier executive session. He only reported how the Trustees voted when pressed for the information.
If the Trustees reached their decision in executive session as indicated by Johnson, who made the motion to go into executive session and for what reason? Who subsequently made the motion to return to open session and where is the vote recorded? Not in the minutes of the Trustees’ meeting.
Also missing from the minutes is any record of who nominated Eastham and Charles Eldred and who seconded the motions.
Virginia’s Freedom of Information Act requires any vote taken in executive session to be repeated in open session. If the requirement isn’t met, the vote isn’t valid. This mandate was passed down from the Virginia General Assembly to protect the public from secret backroom deals. That protection flew out the window on Monday night.
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