St. Louis County District Attorney Wesley Bell has filed a motion in court to bar Councilman Dennis Hancock of Fenton from participating in any official activities or exercising any authority until the case can be heard by a judge.

Hancock said he has been trying to hire his stepdaughter as a parliamentary assistant, a position that pays about $53,000 a year. She started last week, he said, but her hiring paperwork has not yet gone through.

“The county council called me yesterday and told me I violated the rules and had to give up my seat,” said Hancock, a Republican from Fenton. “I’m certainly not going to take it lying down.”

Hancock said he was unaware that the Missouri Constitution prohibits elected officials from hiring relatives.

In a statement Tuesday, Bell said the state constitution “clearly prohibits elected officials from hiring a relative” and that hiring a relative would cause the elected official to lose office.

“It gives me no pleasure to continue this process,” Bell said in the statement, “but given the clear language of the Constitution, it would be a dereliction of our duty not to bring this matter to trial.”

St. Louis County Judge Julia Pusateri Lasater signed the order. Hancock now has until September 17 to file a response.

If the order is made permanent, the St. Louis County Republican Party will hold a special election to select a candidate to succeed Hancock, party chairman Rene Artman said.

Artman, however, said the plan was political in nature: County Councilwoman Dana Redwing, the county’s top attorney, was appointed by County Executive Sam Page, a Democrat.

“This is disgusting,” Artman said.

Redwing declined to comment. Page spokesman Doug Moore said a “whistleblower” raised the issue.

In the past, elected officials in the region have been forced out of office due to the nepotism clause in the state constitution.

In 2014, St. Louis Register of Deeds Sharon Quigley Carpenter abruptly resigned after admitting to hiring a relative in violation of the state’s nepotism law.

Hancock said he expects to be served with an order from a judge today. The order would prevent him from attending Tuesday’s 3 p.m. council meeting, he said. Hancock said he understood from the county council that he would also be removed from office.

After Hancock heard from Redwing, his stepdaughter decided not to take the job and agreed not to be paid for the previous week’s work. The council wanted to hire his stepdaughter because they trusted her, she was qualified and was looking for a job.

He said he “does not normally study the state constitution paragraph by paragraph.”

“Ignorance of the law is no excuse, but in this case that is exactly what happened,” Hancock said.

Hancock is seeking legal advice, he said.

The council is expected to vote on Tuesday afternoon on whether to hire its own lawyer to represent it in court and provide legal advice.

Three members of the seven-member council are against the idea. If Hancock is not there, the measure could fail.