Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Governance Appointments topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Residents allege discrimination in Waynesville appointment; law director says executive‑session confidentiality limits comment
Summary
Public commenters said Council’s handling of a recent vacancy may have excluded a candidate because of his DEI work; speaker Robert Bowen cited the Bostock decision and ORC 4112.02 and urged recall or removal; Law Director Jeff Forbes and Mayor Isaacs said executive‑session deliberations are confidential and outlined recall/removal procedures.
Several residents used the public‑comment period at the Aug. 5 Waynesville council meeting to criticize how Council filled a recent vacancy and to allege discriminatory motives in the selection process.
"This village or any other government body has no place for this mentality in today’s society," Robert Bowen said after alleging that remarks made during the July 31 session about a candidate’s work on diversity and inclusion could amount to unlawful discrimination. Bowen cited the U.S. Supreme Court’s Bostock decision and ORC 4112.02 in arguing the selection process exposed the village to legal risk and urged consideration of removal or recall procedures.
Linda Keiffer, whose comments opened the topic, asked whether the July 10 application deadline had been honored; Mr. Forbes confirmed a July 10 deadline was set but said "nothing in the Charter, ordinances, or state law binds Council to the deadline" and added that council deliberations during executive session are confidential and cannot be discussed publicly. Pat Edgington and Robin Stinson spoke in support of the candidate named David Nation and questioned whether fairness and community standing had been considered.
Council responded with explanations of process rather than details about deliberations. Mr. Forbes walked through the Village Charter reasons for removal and explained that recall requires a statutory petition process if residents pursue it. Council also voted to give Ms. Keiffer more time to present information (motion by Mrs. Miller; roll call 6 yeas).
The meeting record shows concerns and calls for further action from residents, but Council repeatedly stated it could not disclose the contents of the executive session. No formal finding of wrongdoing was made at the meeting, and no council member offered a public rebuttal to the specific accusations during open session.
