Shawnee Township Trustees Testify in Fire Chief Austin Miller's Open Meetings Lawsuit

Shawnee Township Fire Chief Austin Miller's civil lawsuit alleging Open Meetings Act violations went to testimony in Allen County Common Pleas Court, with his attorney seeking a $500 civil forfeiture for each alleged violation plus attorney fees. Yahoo reported that Judge Jeffery Reed will rule in November.

Trustees Testify on Closed-Door Sessions

Three sitting trustees, Paul Neff, Joe Recker and Kenny Gross, testified on October 28 before Judge Reed in the suit Miller filed August 5. Miller's attorney, Dalton Smith, called four witnesses during the three-hour hearing, including Fred Lord, an accounts manager at the human resources consulting firm Clemans Nelson & Associates.

Smith argued that closed-door meetings were called for reasons including "to discuss allegations against a public employee" and other vague descriptions that he said do not meet the law's requirements. Ohio's Open Meetings Act bars executive sessions to consider discipline of an elected official for conduct tied to official duties or that person's removal, and gives public employees who are the subject of such talks the right to attend.

Lord testified that Neff contacted him about "concerns raised in the course of Miller's employment" and that they discussed "a performance improvement plan and possible discipline for Chief Miller." Lord said he sat in on between three and five executive sessions where Miller's conduct was discussed, and that he prepared a letter announcing the township's decision on May 5, before Miller was placed on paid administrative leave on May 11.

Neff confirmed most or all of the board's executive sessions concerned Miller and denied a vote was taken behind closed doors to suspend him, while acknowledging he wrote the announcement in advance "just in case we went that route." Recker said trustees were "very careful to dot every 'i' and cross every 't'" on May 11 and that Miller was never formally notified the session pertained to him.

Charges Dropped Before the Hearing

On October 13, the trustees voted to dismiss three administrative charges against Miller, and he returned to work the next day after being on paid leave for all but 15 days since May 11, Yahoo reported. The trustees had dropped a fourth charge, involving unauthorized software on his work computer, on October 8.

A civil hearing in the case was postponed on October 24 because witnesses were unavailable and rescheduled for October 28, Yahoo reported.

Other Disputes in Court

Legal disputes elsewhere produced settlements and rulings on October 28. Hagens Berman announced a $212.5 million settlement with Zillow in a securities class action and will seek preliminary court approval. A court denied Fulton Bank's motion to compel arbitration in a TCPA class action, finding the clause did not cover a marketing call.

Name-Clearing Hearing Requested

Smith asked the trustees to hold a name-clearing hearing so information about Miller could be aired, and as of October 28 the trustees had not scheduled one, Smith said. Judge Reed will accept written closing arguments and rule in November.