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Council members accuse Mayor Butler of hidden insult in veto message; mayor says she stands by veto
Summary
During the May 19 Forest Park City Council meeting, several council members sharply criticized Mayor Angeline Butler, saying text in her recently issued veto message spells a profanity directed at the council. Butler said she "stands by" the veto and invoked the charter.
Mayor Angeline Butler’s written veto of a recent council action prompted a heated exchange at the City of Forest Park’s May 19 council meeting when several council members said portions of the document, read aloud in the meeting packet, spelled an obscenity across line breaks.
Councilwoman Gunn, who raised the issue during discussion of the mayor’s veto message, said she believed the mayor had intentionally embedded the phrase. “I cannot believe you stood up here and you faced me and everybody on this panel. And you had the audacity to stand here and spell out F U C K Y O U,” Gunn said.
The dispute dominated council comment time, with multiple council members — including Councilwoman Wells and Councilwoman James — saying they were offended and felt disrespected. “When you said F you and your veto, you said F the citizens of Forest Park because those are our bosses,” Councilwoman Wells said. Councilwoman James described being “appalled” and said the manner of presentation undermined trust among the governing body.
Butler responded during the meeting by saying she stood by her veto and cited the charter. “I stand by my veto,” Mayor Butler said on the dais. The mayor did not provide additional explanation for the specific textual formatting that council members described during public discussion.
The disagreement surfaced during routine business and the vote to approve meeting minutes for May 5. Council members debated whether approving the minutes would record the veto text in the official record; the motion to adopt the minutes proceeded and the minutes were approved by the council during the meeting.
No formal disciplinary action or further procedural motion about the veto’s wording was taken on the dais during the May 19 meeting. Several council members threatened to review open-records materials to check other communications and documents, and some called for greater intra-council communication before public release of such materials.
The episode concluded with members making closing remarks emphasizing the need to work together. The council did not schedule a follow-up item specifically to address the wording of the mayor’s veto during the May 19 meeting.
Ending: The council’s public disagreement over the mayor’s veto wording was recorded in the official minutes approved May 19; no additional formal action or investigation was announced at the meeting. Council members said they may pursue records requests and further review outside the meeting.
