A judge set a Friday deadline to begin considering whether Travis Thompson can continue to serve as a Winchester Police officer and a Clark County magistrate.

At the end of an hour-long hearing Monday in Clark Circuit Court, Judge Brandy Oliver Brown gave the county attorney and his counsel until 4 p.m. Friday to file their final response.

After 4 p.m., Brown said the case would be submitted for her decision.

The case centers around Thompson, who was hired last year by the Winchester Police Department and was subsequently elected to the Clark County Fiscal Court in November.

Clark County Attorney William Elkins has maintained Thompson is violating state law, which prohibits holding a municipal office and a county office at the same time. He also believes the oath Thompson took as magistrate voids the oath he took to be an officer.

Thompson’s attorney and the city attorney of Winchester say the jobs are not incompatible, as being a police officer is not the same as being a municipal officer.

The case was scheduled for a hearing before Brown so she could rule in the case. Elkins’ attorney Rob Johnson, though, objected to an affidavit from Winchester Police Chief Kevin Palmer which was included in the city’s response. In it, Palmer said police officers do not meet the legal requirements to be a municipal officer, including being appointed or elected, acting without supervision and having an element of permanency.

“Other than the pleadings, do you dispute that its appropriate for the court to rule on the pleadings?” Brown asked.

“No ma’am, we’re not ready,” Johnson said. “If you agree to throw out the affidavit, we would agree it’s not an issue.”

Brown asked Johnson several times if they had other facts to contradict Palmer’s statements. Johnson said they did not have an opportunity to respond to the affidavit and did not have time to hire an expert to review it.

“Do you disagree with the facts that are asserted in it?” Brown asked.

“Yes,” Johnson said, adding Palmer’s statements did not touch on arrest powers or the decisions to arrest or not.

Brian Thomas and William Dykeman, attorneys representing Thompson and the City of Winchester respectively, both said the case was ready for a ruling.

“They haven’t put any facts in evidence,” Dykeman said. “We don’t think there are.”

“They have to present evidence,” Thomas said. “They can’t just argue. It’s too late now.”