KTKA

Shawnee County District Attorney Robert Hecht is taking the City of Topeka to court over a new police helicopter. The suit, which is more than 100 pages long, alleges the city council did something illegal when it entered a lease-purchase agreement to buy the chopper.

"We afforded them every opportunity to respond with a legal opinion which cites either factual errors or legal errors in our opinion," Hecht said at a press conference Friday. "We waited through five city council meetings for them to do so."

In addition to the city manager, the suit is also against Municipal Services Group Inc., and Shreib-Air Inc. Hecht says he wants a judge to rule the purchase as void and have the city refunded the $70,000 plus it has already paid for the helicopter.

The city council and the mayor have fought about the chopper since last summer. After the mayor vetoed the idea, some say the city council did an end-run around the mayor, approving the chopper anyway through a "communication." Hecht says Topeka Mayor Bill Bunten did have the right to veto the purchase and says what the council did was illegal. That's not the entire reason Hecht says he filed the suit.

"The question really is," Hecht said, "Can the city council create a process by which they can do an end run around the mayor's ability to veto?"

It's the question this lawsuit will answer, an answer the mayor is also waiting for.

"Is there a way to avoid a mayoral veto or isn't there," Bunten asked Friday. "I think it'll be bad for the city if you have a vehicle that can circumvent a mayoral veto."

Hecht is also suing Municipal Services Group and Schreib-Air to get the money paid for the copter, back to the city. Schreib isn't commenting on the suit, but a spokesman did tell me this is the first time the company has ever been sued. As for the city, today spokesman David Bevens released the following statement:

"We have received a courtesy copy of Mr. Hecht's lawsuit against the City of Topeka. We will give the 24-page document and its 11 attached exhibits a deliberate review and a considered response."