By Jim Morrill
jmorrill@charlotteobserver.com

Mecklenburg County commissioners Tuesday night launched an independent probe into the hiring of its new chairman by a nonprofit health center for which he'd successfully lobbied for additional county money.

In his first meeting as board chairman, Democrat Harold Cogdell recused himself from the vote that was sparked by concerns about a conflict of interest.

Commissioners also authorized the county attorney to begin a separate investigation into whether Democrat George Dunlap, the commissioner who raised those concerns, violated any ethical codes by not revealing it sooner.

Cogdell has been under fire since ousting fellow Democrat Jennifer Roberts as chair this month by allying with the board's four Republicans.

On Tuesday, Cogdell had a short honeymoon.

Five minutes after he opened the meeting, Democratic commissioner Vilma Leake demanded to know why he had switched her seat farther down the dais.

"I just want to know why and with who did you communicate because it certainly wasn't with me," she said.

Later, Democratic commissioners balked after Cogdell announced new committee assignments. Dunlap and Roberts, named to chair committees, asked him why he did that after they'd told him they didn't want to chair committees. Cogdell also named Republicans to chairmanships.

The committee flap got personal. Leake criticized unnamed commissioners who she said rarely attended meetings. Republican Karen Bentley said Leake's remarks were apparently addressed at her, and criticized the way Leake handled meetings that she chaired.

Cogdell appealed for comity.

"I have one goal," he said, "to get the board communicating, to get people talking ... and to get us to work together."

On that, the board would appear to have a way to go.

His chairmanship gambit cost Cogdell trust among fellow Democrats on the commission. And his employment by C.W. Williams Community Health Center raised other concerns.

He was hired as the nonprofit's attorney about two months after he pushed for Mecklenburg commissioners to give it an additional $110,000. Cogdell has said he began interviewing with C.W. Williams, about a month after he lobbied for the extra money. The nonprofit said it hired him on a retainer basis in August.

"If I had been advised there was a conflict of interest, I would not have taken them as a client," Cogdell said earlier this month.

But the possibility of a conflict of interest "threatens to erode public confidence in county government unless independently investigated," Democrat Dumont Clarke told fellow commissioners.

It was Cogdell himself who first called for an investigation in a memo to commissioners. He proposed a single investigation to look into the circumstances of his hiring as well as Dunlap's role in publicizing it.

One issue is whether Dunlap knew about Cogdell's C.W. Williams connection and didn't publicize it until Cogdell sought the chairmanship.

"People are going to ask: 'What did the commissioners know and when did they know it,'" said Republican commissioner Bill James.

The proposal finally approved in an 8-0 vote begins two investigations: one, by an independent investigator of Cogdell's situation, the other by the county attorney, of Dunlap's role.

County officials put aside up to $15,000 for the Cogdell investigation.

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