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Sued commissioners will not get legal help from city
By WAYNE AYERS
Article published on Wednesday, March 15, 2006 |
MADEIRA BEACH – Two city commissioners being sued by citizens over separate matters will not be defended at public expense.
The Board of Commissioners decided at a March 7 workshop meeting to deny commissioners Art Thomas and John Wolbert legal representation by the city. The action means that Thomas and Wolbert are responsible for their own defense, including procurement of an attorney and legal costs.
The decision to deny legal support for Thomas was 3-1, with Commissioner Martha Boos the lone dissenter. The meeting was a workshop, the decision was by consensus, and it went against the advice of City Attorney Michael Connolly. Thomas did not vote.
Connolly cited a number of legal precedents that he said appeared to support Thomas’ right to public defense, including a “two-pronged test” set forth by the Florida Supreme Court.
Connolly also cited what he termed the ‘chilling effect’ that failure to provide a defense would have on public officials’ conduct.
“We don’t want to start down the slippery slope that encourages citizens who disagree with the actions a commissioner takes to sue,” Connolly said.
Connolly also said that the courts have determined that public officials have absolute immunity from defamation suits.
“I am perplexed as to why these lawsuits have been filed,” he said.
Most of the commission members did not buy the city attorney’s arguments.
Thomas is currently the object of seven lawsuits brought against him by Arthur and Caryl Broaderick, Robert Shaw, Leonard Piotti, Pat and George Shontz and Marilyn Maginley. The citizens claim they were libeled by comments Thomas made in a recent letter to the editor published in the Beach Beacon and Seminole Beacon, and online, now in the TBNweekly.com archives.
Mayor Charles Parker said that Thomas was not acting within the scope of his official duties when he wrote the letter. He said Thomas showed poor judgment and did not clear the letter’s contents with anyone in the city.
“He is not entitled to any legal support and must bear the consequences,” Parker said.
Commissioner John Wolbert said, “I don’t like setting a precedent that every time we shoot our mouth off and can be sued, that the city has to pay for it.”
Vice Mayor Martha Boos, however, said that the ‘chilling effect’ of failure to support Thomas would discourage others from seeking seats on the commission.
“Who will you have to run?” Boos asked. “Only them, the people who filed the lawsuit.”
Comments from citizens attending the meeting were centered more on Thomas’ actions rather than the question of defending him. Several praised Thomas as an “independent thinker” who is in danger of being muzzled.
“There are factions who are trying to bring down a commissioner who spoke out and answered questions,” Steve Kochick said.
Resident Dick Lewis took the opposite view. “Spending city money to defend a personal letter by Commissioner Thomas criticizing other people is absurd,” Lewis said.
Wolbert also denied city funding
In the suit against Wolbert, which seeks to deny him his commission seat, Connolly said that the commission needed to decide if the case against Wolbert meets the two-pronged test, i.e. that it arose from or in connection with the performance of his official duties and that it serves a public purpose.
The lawsuit challenges Wolbert’s residency in Madeira Beach. The commissioner has lived with his wife Linda in Seminole since his home was heavily damaged by Hurricane Frances in 2004. Wolbert has stated his intention to return to his Lillian Drive address when the construction of his home is finished.
Legal precedent for the city’s defense of Wolbert was unclear. Connolly cited only one legal case similar to Wolbert’s relating to a person’s qualifications to be a candidate for office. In that case, the actions took place prior to that person’s becoming a public official, and the attorney general concluded the first prong of the test was not satisfied.
In Wolbert’s case, he was a commissioner when the hurricane hit his home and prompted his move.
The motion to have the city defend Wolbert failed to gain the majority needed for a consensus. The move was supported by Commissioner Arnold Alloway and Parker, with Boos and Thomas opposed.
Boos pointed out that Wolbert and Thomas can still seek reimbursement of legal fees from the city should they win their cases.
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Article published on Wednesday, March 15, 2006
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