Michael Silence has an article (registration required) on the front page of today's paper explaining a recent ruling that the Knox County Charter is "compromised":

Knox County's charter might not be legal, a chancellor presiding over some of the term-limits litigation suggested in an opinion this week.

As part of an opinion he issued denying a request that Sheriff Tim Hutchison's name be removed from the May 2 primary ballot, Chancellor John Weaver wrote that the governmental structure outlined in the charter "appears to be a compromised form of government."

Weaver added that "no such compromised form of government appears to be available" under either the Tennessee Constitution or state law.

According to the article, Weaver wrote in his opinion that the charter is invalid because it doesn't set forth qualifications for elected officials such as sheriff, county clerk, trustee, and other offices.

What is this, amateur hour?

I guess all that got overlooked because it is clearly understood what the qualifications are. But since it appears this needs to be codified, here are the qualifications that were left out of the Knox County Charter:

"Candidates for these offices must be Republican, White, Christian (preferably Baptist but Methodist is acceptable), U.T. Football season ticket holders, and members in good standing of the Knox Good Old Boys and Developers Prayer Meeting Club. No others need apply."