Pieter Teeuwissen Named Jackson City Attorney
Over the past few months several people asked me if I thought that Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson would name Pieter Teeuwissen City Attorney. My response was probably not, since the City of Jackson is not known for making the smartest decisions and Mayor Johnson is the person who allowed the Braves to go to Pearl instead of downtown Jackson. But Jackson got one right yesterday when the City Council unanimously approved Teeuwissen as City Attorney, as reported by the Clarion-Ledger.
Teeuwissen spent the last several years running the City's litigation department. He inherited a department in disarray with a reputation for losing lawsuits filed against the City. Teeuwissen installed a motivated team of lawyers who reduced the backlog of cases against the City and significantly improved the results in cases against the City.
From a political standpoint Teeuwissen's most impressive feat was his ability to effectively serve in the City's legal department during the Melton administration. In addition to being the subject of state and federal criminal prosecutions, Melton was a wing-nut who did not get along with several members of the City Council. Melton's personality could have easily bled into the legal department and resulted in the exodus of Teeuwissen. Instead, he stayed and was trusted by the Council.
Teeuwissen will now supervise approximately fifteen lawyers in the Office of the City Attorney.
