The City of Milton on Monday requested sanctions against Mayor Heather Lindsay, asking the Court to award attorney’s fees, per Florida statutes, for its opposition to Lindsay’s Motion for Judgement on the Pleadings, filed Oct. 4.
Per court documents, the City states Lindsay and/or her attorney knew or should have known the allegations in the aforementioned Oct. 4 motion and motions Sept. 12 Enlargement of Time and Sept. 23 for Summary Judgement were not supported by material facts necessary to establish the claims simultaneously nor would they be supported by the application of existing law to those material facts.
Plantiffs noted that a Motion for Judgement on the Pleadings, per case law, is appropriate after pleadings are closed. “By virture of Defendant’s Motion for Enlargement of Time, Defendant has simulataneously asked the Court to keep the pleadings “open” and to treat the pleadings as “closed,” stated the request for sanctions, which also stated the “Defendant knows that her Motion for Judgement on the Pleadings is frivolous.”
The case involves Lindsay’s failure to produce requested public records involving but not limited to communication with former City Manager Scott Collins. The City claims that so far there has been a 390-day delay in producing certain records.
“Instead of taking responsibility for her actions and participating in good faith in the production of her public records, Lindsay has delayed, obfuscated and frivilously combatted every attempt by the City of Milton to simply obtain her compliance with law…any attempts by Lindsay to avoid full production of her public records should be treated as what they are, criminal non-compliance by an elected official,” states the City’s request.
