EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio — The ongoing crisis in East Cleveland's government reached a new level Thursday, with members of City Council saying they have no faith in Mayor Brandon L. King.
In an emergency resolution, Council unanimously approved (with Ward 4 Councilor Korean Stevenson not voting) dereliction of duty charges against both King and Director of Finance Charles Iyahen. The latest dispute relates to the city's budget, with lawmakers claiming both men "exceeded the authority of their public offices by recklessly creating deficiencies and expending more than Council appropriated for the year 2023."
More specifically, City Council tells 3News the mayor's proposed budget of $36 million is $10 million more than the budget Council passed, but the executive branch decided to go with King's estimate. If that spending continues, legislators say East Cleveland will be $30 million in debt within five years.
"We have to stop the bleeding so we cannot go into a deficit," Ward 3 Councilor Lateek Shabazz said.
The resolution calls for East Cleveland Municipal Court to arrest King and Iyahen on misdemeanor charges, but that seems unlikely to occur, partially thanks to another very public dispute.
In an email to WKYC, Law Director Willa Hemmons not only questioned the legitimacy of at-large Councilor Twon Billings, but also asserted Council Clerk Eric J. Brewer was "not an employee of the City of East Cleveland" and neither was Deputy Clerk Justyn Anderson. She accused Council President Juanita Gowdy of "unlawfully providing all three of them ... unfettered access to City files, fobs, computers, equipment and sensitive information."
Hemmons says both Billings and Anderson "have violent criminal histories" making them ineligible to hold office (neither had records in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court), while Brewer is a former Mayor of East Cleveland whom Hemmons says has been making "frivolous complaints" since being told he lacks the authority of being clerk.
"Currently, we are in litigation with City Council involving not only the legitimacy of appointed councilors; but, also, there is a discrepancy involving whom they hired as council clerk," King said regarding Thursday's vote in favor of criminal charges. "Until both these issues are resolved, we should expect these kinds of accusations."
The city is contesting not just Billings' appointment to Council, but also that of Shabaaz, who took over following the recall of Ernest Smith. Former Council President Nathaniel Martin has claimed he appointed Mark McClain to the Ward 3 seat before his own expulsion, and the city's website still lists both McClain and Martin as being on Council rather than Shabaaz and Billings.
Members of Council fired back by claiming Hemmons is actually no longer the law director, as legislators voted to fire her within the last few months but were ignored by the mayor. Speaking to 3News, Council Vice President Patricia Blochowiak blasted King's actions.
"Unfortunately, Mayor King does not recognize that he needs to follow the law," Blochowiak said. "He doesn't communicate with us. He has separate meetings which he restricts Council from, even though he calls them council meetings."
King survived a recall attempt last November by a mere 28 votes, with the issue making it on the ballot despite Hemmons claiming it was invalid in the first place. It was the same election that saw Smith ousted following multiple controversies, including a raid at his former bar in 2019.
The latest chapter in this saga comes amid drastic turnover in the East Cleveland Police Department, where 16 current or former officers — including former Chief Scott Gardner — have been charged with various offenses including assault, civil rights violations, and theft in office. The city has since turned to the Ohio State Highway Patrol for staffing help.