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Lynchburg council request to pressure school board member to resign fails in tie
Summary
A motion asking Christian DePaul to voluntarily resign from the Lynchburg School Board failed on a 3-3 vote after city council debate about process, due process and a school-board investigation that found DePaul admitted placing a novelty image over a colleague’s portrait.
Lynchburg City Council on Tuesday considered but did not adopt a formal request that Christian DePaul resign from his seat on the Lynchburg School Board, with the vote ending in a 3-3 tie.
The council vote followed a presentation from a school board representative summarizing an investigation into an incident in which a framed photograph of board member Dr. Edwards was removed and covered with an image from the movie The Goonies and the caption area altered. "These are the essential facts and are undisputed," said Dr. Dave, speaking for Lynchburg City Schools, and reported that Mr. DePaul acknowledged the act, apologized and has been removed as chair of the Student Discipline Committee and the Facilities and Finance Committee.
The motion on the council floor, offered by Councilman Wagner, would have asked that "Christian DePaul, a current member of the Lynchburg School Board over the city of Lynchburg, hereby be requested to properly and voluntarily resign his position as a member of the school board." The motion was recorded as failing on a tie: Council member Feraldi, Councilor Wilder and Mayor Taylor voted yes; Council member Admissions, Councilor Timmer and Vice Mayor Diemer voted no. The mayor later reported that Councilwoman Reid had communicated to the council that she believed DePaul should resign but was not present to cast a vote; remote voting was not permitted.
Council discussion ranged from calls for immediate accountability to arguments for a slower, rule-based approach to handling public accusations. Supporters of the resignation request cited DePaul’s admission and the damage they said the episode caused to the schools and community reputation. Opponents and others urged the council to adopt clearer procedures for handling accusations, resignations and public admonishments before acting on personnel requests brought to the council floor.
A substitute motion to develop or adopt a deliberative process for future incidents — introduced by Councilor Timmer to create a formal procedure governing how the council receives resignations, requests for removal and censure actions — was debated separately and failed on a tie earlier in the meeting. Several council members said they supported the concept of clearer procedures but differed on whether the document circulated at the meeting should be adopted immediately or sent forward for additional review.
The council heard that the school board met in closed session with legal counsel and then recited limited facts in open session; the school board has not taken a formal position on whether DePaul should remain on the board. Dr. Dave said the closed-session matters could not be discussed publicly because of legal constraints but recounted the timeline of events: the incident occurred at the end of a Student Discipline Committee meeting on Jan. 21; a training session on Jan. 27 led a staff member to notice and report the altered frame; the school board held a closed meeting with counsel on Feb. 4; and in open session Mr. DePaul acknowledged the conduct and apologized.
Council members who opposed immediate action said they needed more verified documentation and a consistent process for deliberating such matters. Several speakers urged due process and caution about rapid public moves in a heated media environment; others stressed that DePaul’s admitted conduct amounted to poor judgment and warranted resignation. The council did not direct staff to take further formal action at the meeting.
The motion’s failure leaves Mr. DePaul in his school-board seat; the school board already removed him from two committee chair positions. Council members noted that four members of the council had communicated privately that they believed DePaul should resign, but the recorded vote on the floor did not meet the majority required to adopt the council’s requested resolution.
The meeting closed without additional formal action on the matter; participants indicated further deliberations about process and rules may follow in future meetings.
