Ethics Officer demands $450,000 from Tallahassee, public apologies from Mayor Dailey and the Board Chair
October 23, 2019
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) -- Tensions in City Hall continue, but this time, involving Tallahassee's Independent Ethics Officer, Julie Meadows-Keefe. Meadows-Keefe has a series of demands as part of an early resignation, including public apologies and $450,000.
Meadows-Keefe is scheduled to resign in February; however, multiple members of the public have pushed for an earlier resignation, citing inappropriate behavior.
Tallahassee attorney Marie Mattox is representing Meadows-Keefe; on Sunday, she e-mailed demands to the City Attorney.
Those include a public and written apology from Mayor John Dailey: "he needs to apologize for the personal attacks on Ms. Keefe."
"Something needs to happen to repair her reputation. And that's probably the single biggest thing that the City can do is repair her reputation, and have the Mayor say, 'Look, I'm wrong. I'm sorry for what I've done to you,'" said Meadows-Keefe's counsel, Marie Mattox.
Another demand would be for the Ethics Board Chair, Richard Herring, to "publicly acknowledge everything she has accomplished over the past five years."
As part of the demands, Meadows-Keefe would resign after the Ethics Board's December 2019 meeting; during that time, "there can be no retaliation against her."
In addition, Meadows-Keefe asks for a positive letter of recommendation, family health insurance for one year, and a payment of $450,000.
Meadows-Keefe recently came under fire for using funds from her office for a subscription to Tiger Bay. At the last Ethics Meeting, Board Chair Richard Herring made a motion for Meadows-Keefe to repay the $1,200.
Her demands include an apology from Herring, "publicly state[ing] that Ms. Keefe has been transparent with him the entire time he has been Chair about both her personal and business life on matters that could impact the Board and that he was wrong to allow any other impression."
Meadows-Keefe also wants to be reimbursed for the Tiger Bay expense by November 10, 2019.
The final demand listed in the letter from Mattox to the City Attorney, Cassandra Jackson was for the creation of an agenda item "regarding the propriety of City officials lobbying Board members to terminate, hire, or otherwise impact the City Ethics officer's employment."
Mattox writes that the Mayor is overstepping his boundaries, and that his actions constitute a possible separate ethics issue that should be reported to the State Ethics Commission.
"The City charter prohibits elected officials from interfering in any way with the Ethics Board, the hiring and firing of employees that work for the Ethics Board, in particular Ms. Meadows-Keefe, and Mayor Dailey has violated that by trying to interfere with her employment, said Mattox.
City Attorney Cassandra Jackson said she is willing to meet with Meadows-Keefe and her representation.
"The ethics officer, who is represented by counsel, has some things she wants to say, she wants to discuss with her, and we are always open to hearing and listening, and determining whether or not we need to take some action," said Jackson.
"We could file lawsuit, but my hope would be that we can work it out," said Mattox.
However, Jackson said these concerns need to go to the Independent Ethics Board's counsel, because board members are not City employees.
""The charter provides that the Independent Ethics Board is a separate entity from the City of Tallahassee, and we don't govern them, so really, they have to take that up with the Independent Ethics Board, or their attorney," said Jackson.
John Reid, the counsel for the Independent Ethics Board, told WCTV he was cc'd on the original e-mail of demands, but cannot comment further.
WCTV has reached out to Meadows-Keefe for comment but has not heard back.
Mayor Dailey's office sent the following statement to WCTV:
