Kingman fires city manager

KINGMAN, Ariz. -- Embattled City Manager Paul Beecher was fired Friday after City Council members voted unanimously to terminate his contract.

Beecher was hired in 2005. Residents have been calling for his ouster for months, spurred by controversies involving a public review of his e-mails and his decisions involving highway construction and commercial development.

Councilman Tom Carter said a severance agreement orchestrated by Beecher for former Economic Development Director Jeff Weir was the last straw.

On Aug. 3, Weir submitted a claim demanding that the city honor the terms of a severance package valued at about $202,000. The contract was signed by both Beecher and Weir.

However, council members had voted in late May to eliminate the severance appropriation from the preliminary budget, not knowing it had been executed in writing.