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Residents urge Montclair council to strip duties or press for resignation after court finds Lopez liable
Summary
Two residents and several speakers urged Councilmember Ben Lopez to resign after a court found him liable for sexual harassment; Mayor Martinez outlined limits on the council’s removal power, and the council scheduled a closed‑session update and requested an accounting of legal costs.
Public speakers pressed the Montclair City Council on Monday to remove or further restrict Councilmember Ben Lopez after a judge found him liable in a sexual‑harassment case involving two city employees.
Alice Garcia, who identified herself as a Montclair resident and the mother of one of the plaintiffs, told the council she sat through the trial and that the judge “found him liable for sexual harassment” and made “specific findings of fraud, oppression, and malice.” Garcia said the city has already paid more than $550,000 in taxpayer money to settle claims and urged the council to “strip him of every committee assignment” and “revoke his travel budget.”
Bruce Colt, another speaker during public comment, told the council “you need to resign. You need to man up and you need to resign,” and urged the council to explore extraordinary steps to recover judgments and to prevent Lopez from running again.
Mayor Martinez responded that state law limits the council’s authority to remove an elected member, noting removal can happen only through regular elections or a voter recall; voluntary resignation remains the primary means for a member to leave office. The mayor reviewed Resolution 22‑3344, a prior censure adopted in April 2022 that the mayor said remains in effect and which includes restrictions such as removal from council committees, limits on one‑on‑one contact with city employees, and prohibitions on city‑paid travel. “These restrictions remain in place,” the mayor said.
The mayor told the council the city filed a cross‑complaint in 2023 seeking to recover about $550,000 paid in settlement and that the court has assessed additional penalties of roughly $178,000. A final ruling on how costs may be recovered is expected next month, the mayor said, and he asked the city manager to provide an updated report on total legal costs related to the case.
Council members voted to place a closed‑session update on the council’s Jan. 20 agenda to discuss the case and determine whether further action is appropriate.
The meeting also included multiple holiday presentations and routine business; the council did not vote to remove or further strip Lopez at the meeting.
