LAKE LAFAYETTE, MO -
Residents in a small town east of the metro are calling for their mayor to resign after the revelation that he is listed on the state's sex offender registry.
Lake Lafayette, Missouri, Mayor Jim Jeffries, who took office last April, was convicted of having non-consensual sex with a 15-year-old girl in 1994.
Jeffries, along with thousands of other Missourians, were forced to put their names on the registry after the state supreme court ruled in June that all offenders must register regardless of when they were convicted.
Councilwoman Leanna Larsen says that Jeffries needs to resign, adding that a city leader should not have a record like this.
"(The news) sent a major shockwave," said Larsen. "It does not set a good precedent to have a mayor on a sexual offenders list."
Former mayor Tom Williams agrees, saying that he was surprised to learn the truth about Jeffries.
"If he had any gall at all, he would step down and resign," said Williams. "This is somebody that I've known for 40-odd years, and I never expected to hear that."
In April, Jeffries won with 61 percent of the vote, and while some argue that the conviction is too old to matter, many of his supporters now want him out. Larsen says that Thursday night's city council meeting made that clear.
"A lot of loud voices, some cursing, people stomping around, getting mad, leaving," said Larsen. "But he just sat there."
FOX 4 attempted to contact Jeffries, but no one answered the door at his home, and repeated attempts to contact him by phone were not returned.
In the end, Williams says that the residents of the small town near Odessa won't stand for what Jeffries did 15 years ago.
"They're going to fight him til he's out of there," said Williams. "And he might fight, trying to stay in there. But he's going to lose."
Lake Lafayette, Missouri, Mayor Jim Jeffries, who took office last April, was convicted of having non-consensual sex with a 15-year-old girl in 1994.
Jeffries, along with thousands of other Missourians, were forced to put their names on the registry after the state supreme court ruled in June that all offenders must register regardless of when they were convicted.
Councilwoman Leanna Larsen says that Jeffries needs to resign, adding that a city leader should not have a record like this.
"(The news) sent a major shockwave," said Larsen. "It does not set a good precedent to have a mayor on a sexual offenders list."
Former mayor Tom Williams agrees, saying that he was surprised to learn the truth about Jeffries.
"If he had any gall at all, he would step down and resign," said Williams. "This is somebody that I've known for 40-odd years, and I never expected to hear that."
In April, Jeffries won with 61 percent of the vote, and while some argue that the conviction is too old to matter, many of his supporters now want him out. Larsen says that Thursday night's city council meeting made that clear.
"A lot of loud voices, some cursing, people stomping around, getting mad, leaving," said Larsen. "But he just sat there."
FOX 4 attempted to contact Jeffries, but no one answered the door at his home, and repeated attempts to contact him by phone were not returned.
In the end, Williams says that the residents of the small town near Odessa won't stand for what Jeffries did 15 years ago.
"They're going to fight him til he's out of there," said Williams. "And he might fight, trying to stay in there. But he's going to lose."
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