After nearly a month of searching, the Moscow City Council approved a replacement for city attorney Randy Fife – who resigned from his position last month – Monday night.
A nationwide search for the new city attorney led Mayor Nancy Chaney to appoint Tyrel Stevenson, an Idaho lawyer, with approval from the city council.
Leslie Moss, the human resources director for the City of Moscow, said Fife resigned from his position in good spirits and has accepted the opportunity to lead the legal department in his hometown.
“He was offered a job that he could not refuse as the new in-house city attorney for the city of Idaho Falls,” Moss said.
Legal Assistant Patti McKinney said she and Fife had a good system in place and that she feels dejected about his resignation.
It’s sad to see him go. I got real set in my ways and was used to how he did everything,” she said. “When he dictated, I could almost type what he was going to say before he said it. He has taught me a lot and I will miss that knowledge and wisdom.”
Meanwhile, City Supervisor Gary Riedner took the role as the acting city attorney while the search for a replacement went underway.
“I’m handling the legal and administrative functions of the city attorney’s office,” Riedner said. “And Rod Hall, our city prosecutor, is helping take up the slack as well.”
Moss said the City of Moscow approved additional compensation for Riedner, $1,000 for each two-week pay period, and Hall, $500 for each pay period, for carrying out the duties as acting city attorney.
“In case that sounds like a lot of money, I got to tell you it is only comes to a little over $12 an hour for [Riedner],” Moss said. “It is not really much in the weight of additional compensation.”
Riedner said he worked closely with Fife during his 16 years as the city attorney but that the career change was a positive move for him and his family. It also prompted the appointment of Stevenson.
“Certainly when you lose an attorney of Randy’s experience, well, it is going to be a transitional phase,” Riedner said. “Tyrel has got a lot of good experience in the type of law that is practiced in a public entity, so we’re looking forward to having someone of his caliber on staff.”
Stevenson is currently the assistant general counsel for the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and has experience as a public defender, Reidner said. He is also a University of Idaho graduate with a BA in English and a law degree from the law school.
McKinney was able to meet Stevenson briefly through the interview process and she said that he appears to be suitable for the position.
“Out of the five applicants, he was interested in what I had to say. Some of the others were not as I would have liked them to be,” McKinney said.
Stevenson will assume the position as the Moscow city attorney on May 27.
Amber Emery can be reached at [email protected]