Politics & Government

Lawsuits Come Out At Ellisville City Council Meeting

The Wednesday meeting also featured the swearing in of three new council members and put in motion a process to hold a special election.

A little more than a week after being removed from office on charges that he abused his authority, Ellisville’s former Mayor Adam Paul stood before a new city council and announced he had launched a pair of lawsuits.

The venue was a public meeting Wednesday night at Ellisville City Hall that also saw the swearing-in of its recently elected members, Cynthia Pool, Michael Cahill and Gary Voss.

Paul made his remarks during the public comment portion of the meeting and struck a defiant tone, promising that he would return to office.

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“It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when,” he said.

He also used the time to explain the nature of the lawsuits he had brought. The first is directed individually at Councilman Matt Pirrello, City Manager Kevin Bookout, City Attorney Paul Martin and Ellisvile resident Katie James and seeks damages for defamation to his character.

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The resolution calling for his removal initially included allegations that he consumed alcohol on the job, although they were later dropped.

“I come here today in a sort of sadness,” he said, later adding “I never wanted to get to this point … it’s terrible when someone says you are a ‘disgusting human being’ and I’ve gotten that for the last two months.”

Paul said the lawsuit is claiming monetary damages in excess of $25,000, but the final amount would ultimate be decided by a judge if the case goes in Paul’s favor.

The second legal action is a suit calling for Paul’s reinstate as mayor. Previous attempts by Paul’s lawyer to stop the impeachment proceedings were each blocked by a St. Louis Circuit Court judge.

More details on the suits will likely be forthcoming, as Paul said he would share the legal documents with Patch and other members of the media.

(You can view the complete defamation lawsuit in the PDF attached to this article.)

Afterwards, Pirrello said he no comment on the issue other than to say that the lawsuit against him was no surprise, noting that Paul and his lawyer, Chet Pleban, had made public threats to do so if Paul was removed.

“They made it perfectly clear that they had full intentions of suing everybody for every reason they could find," he said. 

An Emotional Farewell

As its last act, the outgoing council approved a series of resolution honoring its departing members for their service.

Dawn Anglin, Michelle Murray and Troy Pieper each received a plaque bearing a personalized dedication. Murray and Anglin had been prohibited from running again due to term limits while Pieper had lost the April 2 election to Cahill.

When it came time for Murray to receive her plaque, she used the moment to issue a highly emotional speech condemning the critical treatment the city’s council and staff had received from some during the impeachment process.

Taking long pauses and occasionally choked by emotion, Murray said she had promised to leave “with grace and dignity” but also felt compelled to speak her mind.

“These people,” she said referring to the city staff and council members. “Do not deserve the kinds of comments that have been leveled at them, nor do I.”

She indicated that although she loved the City of Ellisville and that five of her six years in public office had been “wonderful,” the events of the last year have made her decide to move as soon as possible.

“I got an email from someone who has never even met me saying I am a disgrace and a horrible person,” she said. “I never imagined this would be my swan song.”

Special Election on the Way

One of the new council’s first orders of business was to decide how to fill the vacancy left by Paul’s removal.

The section of the city’s charter dealing with the issue had created some confusion about how the council could proceed. Specifically, the question was did the council need to appoint an interim mayor, hold a special election or do some combination of both?

A quick polling of the council found all its members in agreement that the best solution would be to allow the matter to be settled by a special election.

“The sooner, the better,” Cahill said. “I am for not putting [a mayor] in, but having the people put one in.”

A time was not set for when the special election will be held, but Pirrello said the city’s staff would be directed to research what the soonest possible date could be to do so.


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