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SMITHVILLE — City Council last week chose not to further investigate claims against Mayor Sharon Foerster, who had been accused of violating Smithville’s ethics policy.
The special-called session March 23 came after Police Chief David Repka filed a complaint against the mayor for allegedly misusing his name in a recent search through city records. The meeting was held as a public hearing at the request of Foerster, though much of the original complaint was dismissed prior to Monday’s session and not shared.
The council could have held the meeting behind closed doors in executive session, according to Thomas Gwosdz, the city’s legal counsel.
“(Foerster) would like this (meeting) to occur in the public so that the community is aware of what the allegation is and what her response is,” said Foerster’s attorney Caroline McClimon.
Officials said Repka filed the complaint after Foerster used his name and the word “police” while searching city documents. Foerster cited human error, as she tried to find the correct prompt needed for her search.
“The only part of the complaint that remains is the question of whether or not the mayor failed to meet her duty under the public information act to produce records that were responsive to (Repka’s) request,” Gwosdz said.
Councilwoman Cathy Meek suggested Smithville establish a technological protocol to avoid similar issues.
“It seems like (Foerster) did what she thought at the time was the reasonable method of finding these documents, but … there doesn’t seem to be a standard that was followed and there was no oversight for her to do anything different than what she did,” Meek said.
While Councilman Brandon Dunham added there were parts of the complaint, including the “content of the (mayor’s) messages,” that he did not like, he said he could not “in good conscience say that (the search) was negligent.”
The council agreed and determined they would not move forward with any more action against the mayor.
“The culture we cultivate is the culture we accept, and we all need to get better at everything we do,” Councilman Mitchell Jameson said.
All city council meetings can be attended in person at City Hall, 317 Main St., or viewed online at ci.smithville.tx.us.
