Barring a last-minute decision by Earl Tottenham to resign, Galveston County commissioners Monday are expected to direct the district attorney to take action to remove the Precinct 3 constable from office.

Tottenham faces removal from office after it was revealed his state-mandated peace officer’s license was suspended four years ago.

Two attempts by Tottenham in recent weeks to regain his license were unsuccessful. He failed a state test twice.

County Judge Jim Yarbrough had hoped to avoid what could turn into a showdown between the longtime lawman and the commissioners court.

“With the best interests of the county and citizens we serve in mind, this is to request you resign your position as Precinct 3 constable,” Yarbrough wrote in a letter to Tottenham on Nov. 1. “If you decline to tender your resignation, a removal action in court will be instituted.”

The removal of an elected constable from office is not automatic and requires a court hearing.

Monday’s action by the county commissioners would direct District Attorney Kurt Sistrunk to proceed.

The commissioners also will consider seeking a temporary injunction to remove Tottenham from office immediately as the civil proceedings progress, Yarbrough said.

In an interview with The Daily News last week, Tottenham said he was prepared to fight such an action.

“I’ve gotten with a lawyer, and we are making a plan of action for that,” Tottenham said Thursday.

Yarbrough said it would be in the best interest of the people of Galveston County if Tottenham would step down.

“I really wish we could have avoided this,” Yarbrough said. “We tried working with him to make this right. But there is only so much we can do. The law is pretty clear on this issue. He has to have that license in order to hold that office.”

The constable maintains his license — which was revoked in 2001 for failing to maintain the proper number of state-mandated training hours — is a result of a mistake by the state agency responsible for issuing that license.

He has also laid blame on the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office Academy, saying that office did not properly track training courses he took.

However, the sheriff’s office said it has no records of Tottenham having registered for or taken the courses he claims to have passed.

The academy’s director has said the courses the constable claimed to have taken were not offered at the times he was to have been in training.

If Tottenham is removed from office, county commissioners could appoint an interim constable.

Depending on when the position would be vacated, the seat would be then placed on the ballot for November 2006 elections, including the primaries in March.

However, should the matter not be resolved before the Jan. 1 filing deadline for that election, a special election would have to be called, said Yarbrough.

The constable offices in Galveston County are not scheduled for election until 2008.

Even if removed from office, Tottenham could seek to be elected back to the position. If elected, he would have 270 days from taking office to produce evidence he had a peace officer’s license.

The constable does have a third attempt to pass the aptitude test within the next five months available to him. If he were to fail for a third time, he could go back and take the required basic law enforcement courses to receive the license from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education, agency spokeswoman Lilly Alderete said.

What’s next?

• County commissioners could vote to ask the district attorney to proceed with case to remove constable from office.

• The district attorney could move ahead with a quo warranto proceeding, a civil trial to remove constable from office.

• County commissioners could seek a temporary injunction to have the constable removed from office while quo warranto proceeding is under way.

• If the constable resigns or is removed from office before Jan. 1, the office could then part of the November 2006 election cycle. If the constable is not out of office by Jan. 1, a special election must be called to fill the unexpired term.