Gladwin Council temporarily suspends livestreaming after unintended broadcast of disciplinary hearing

The Gladwin City Council voted 7-1 on June 15 to temporarily suspend its YouTube livestream after an unintended live broadcast of a DPW predetermination hearing.

Legal counsel advised the council to halt livestreaming "until the City can ensure the system is operating reliably and securely," and members agreed to suspend the feed while staff verify equipment and access controls. The motion to pause livestreaming was made by Council Member Caffrey and supported by Council Member Winarski.

Labor attorney Bonnie Toskey, speaking by phone about the inadvertent broadcast, told the council the employee at the center of the hearing "voluntarily disclosed medical information and that no HIPAA violation occurred." That statement framed part of the council's discussion about attorney-client privilege, personnel confidentiality and how meeting technology is managed.

Public commenters pressed the council for wider accountability. Scott Hawblitzel read a prepared statement criticizing the handling of the incident and asked the council to reconsider a proposed three-year contract for the city manager; Wendy Ouimet expressed similar concerns about professionalism. Mayor Sarah Kile also read an emailed statement from Ashley Brooke Langdon about an incident involving her sister.

City Administrator Kimberly Hines said an outside reviewer could not access the video equipment without administrative rights and suggested the problem may relate to browser updates; she asked staff to contact the vendor, Master Electric, for further assistance.

The council did not set a firm date to resume livestreaming; members said they would wait until equipment, administrative access and procedural safeguards are verified.