Bradenton Beach Mayor Bill Shearon is facing possible recall from office, but the charges are unfamiliar to him.
The recall petition to remove Shearon, which is being circulated by former Commissioner Peter Barreda, contains two counts of alleged malfeasance.
The first count states that on or about Feb. 6, the mayor violated Florida’s Government-in-the-Sunshine Laws by discussing pending litigation during a two-way email conversation with another commissioner.
It also states that on or about April 21, Shearon violated the Sunshine Law by discussing the special events permitting process during a two-way email conversation with another commissioner.
“I don’t recall the emails,” Shearon said Dec. 19. “The last time I checked, between Jan. 1 and June, I had 6,000 pages of email. Unless I see the email (in question), it’s hard for me to comment on it.
“My question is: Was this turned in as a Sunshine Law violation to Tallahassee?”
Barreda could not be reached for comment on the validity of the counts of malfeasance.
Commissioner Janie Robertson, special events liaison to the commission, recalls the email regarding special events.
She is adamant that no violation of the Sunshine Law involving her was committed.
“I was charged by commission to evaluate our process for permitting special events and trying to improve it,” she said in an email to The Islander. “At public meetings, I asked for input from the commission. Mayor emailed his suggestions to me and Commissioner (Jack) Clarke provided me with his written suggestions.”
Robertson said the restructuring is a “work in progress” that she routinely reports at meetings.
“Liaison reports do not require that content be declared on the agenda,” she wrote. “Final decisions would be brought before commission…. I see no violation whatever here; certainly no malfeasance.”
Regarding the count involving pending litigation, Robertson said she has “scoured my emails from January to March and have no idea to what this count refers.”
Shearon said he’s in favor of having a recall election as opposed to the ongoing forfeiture process, saying he wants voters, not commissioners, to decide his fate. But he said a recall petition should be factual.
“I don’t see how they can charge that until I have been convicted of it,” the mayor said. “I don’t understand how they can claim on a petition that I committed a Sunshine Law violation.
“That’s quite a long time ago and I have not received any notification that I may have committed a Sunshine Law violation. That’s somebody’s opinion. They’re trying to recall me on something that might be justified and might not. If I knew what those two emails were, I might be able to clarify it and they are not showing that in the petition.”