An ethics hearing for Simpson County Judge-Executive Mason Barnes has been delayed for a second time this year, after Barnes was accused by several members of Franklin’s city government of unethical practices related to his construction company and unprofessional conduct with other local officials.

The hearing was originally scheduled to take place at the Barren River Area Development District office on Oct. 17. That morning, the meeting was postponed indefinitely.

A second date was chosen for Dec. 13, but it was postponed again. BRADD Executive Director Eric Sexton said since each party in the hearing is entitled to legal counsel, the delays are due to scheduling conflicts associated with the attorneys.

“Our hope would be that before the holidays there would be a new (date) notice,” Sexton said.

He said BRADD is acting “just as a facilitator” for the organization’s Regional Ethics Committee. Even though BRADD will host the hearing, he said, action is not guaranteed.

“The committee is unique,” Sexton said. “It’s not a regular meeting committee. It meets at the call of a complaint.”

A letter was sent to BRADD that outlined complaints against Barnes. The letter alleges that Barnes, who owns the construction company Mason Barnes Construction, used his position as judge-executive to “receive preferential treatment” permitting the company to start building a house on property that was zoned for “Interstate Interchange Business District.”

According to the letter, the construction was done “months before” the property was rezoned to residential. The letter sent to BRADD provides a timeline of events, which states a construction permit for the house was approved on Dec. 12, 2023.

By the time a first reading on the rezoning was held on March 19, 2024, the house was nearing completion, the letter states, and a second reading was held on April 16 with approval for the rezoning granted. According to the letter, Barnes did not recuse himself from discussion or from the vote.

The letter also states Barnes “has eroded the public trust/confidence due to behavior observed over the past several months,” in reference to something described in the letter as “an outburst” from Barnes directed toward Franklin Mayor Larry Dixon during an executive session following a meeting of the Franklin-Simpson Industrial Authority.

The Daily News obtained a separate letter signed by Franklin City Manager Kenton Powell describing the outburst. In it, Powell states Barnes told Dixon to “be a man” and told Powell to “wipe that smirk off your face.”

Details of what was discussed during the executive session were not provided in the letter.

Powell stated in the letter that after the meeting adjourned, Barnes rose from his seat at a conference table rapidly and began moving toward him. Powell stated he and Franklin City Commissioner Wendell Stewart moved to block Barnes from moving further, who was shouting and pointing at Dixon.

Barnes declined to comment on the hearing. The Daily News reached out to Dixon as well, but did not receive comment in time for publication.