Council votes to pursue removal process for member after email was shared with media

A dispute about an email forwarded to local media dominated part of the Henderson City Council’s June 8 meeting and produced a 4–3 vote to pursue a formal removal process for Councilmember Garry D. Daeke.

Councilmember Geraldine Champion moved to pursue the removal process after discussion that centered on whether the email’s contents were confidential personnel information and whether its distribution violated open meetings or public‑record rules. City Attorney Dan Hartzog Jr. told the Council that personnel matters can be confidential and that possible consequences for releasing confidential information range from censure to, in extreme cases, a removal process that would require formal hearings and due process. The clerk’s note recorded Hartzog’s advice that Daeke should recuse himself from a removal‑related vote because it involved him personally.

Daeke said he was contacted by a reporter from The Daily Dispatch who told him the exact contents of the email; he consulted City Manager Paylor Spruill and said he believed the information was public. He offered to accept censure if the Council chose. Councilmember Tami Walker and others noted an IT report showed the email was forwarded to Tyler Davis (The Daily Dispatch) and John Rose (WIZS) with the sender listed as Mr. Daeke.

On the motion to pursue a removal process, Councilmembers Champion, Venable, Gill and Walker voted yes; Councilmembers Gomez‑Jimenez, Noel and Seifert voted no. The minutes record the vote and direct that next steps follow the procedural requirements outlined by the City Attorney.

The action is procedural: pursuing a removal process initiates a further formal procedure rather than immediately removing a member. The City Attorney emphasized the process is rare and would include additional procedural steps and hearings.