Lawfare is overwhelming a political adversary with constant legal challenges that have little-to-no merit. Winning is not the goal. Keeping opponents tied up with court, draining their financial resources, and painting them negatively in the eyes of the public are the true goals.
As the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners (OCBOC) works toward resolution in the dispute with Health Officer Adeline Hambley, it appears Hambley and her Attorney Sarah Howard are working to keep the matter tied up in the court system and playing out in front of the public.
The two parties are involved in two matters which are separate but intertwined.
46.11 (n) legislative hearing carried out by the OCBOC to determine whether to remove Hambley from her position as Health Officer
Motion filed in the court system by Attorney Howard to enforce a non-existent settlement which was supposedly reached during the ongoing 46.11 (n) hearing
The legislative 46.11 (n) hearing to determine whether to remove Adeline Hambley from her position as Health Officer over allegations of demonstrating incompetence, misconduct, and neglect of duty during the FY24 budgeting process, has gone into mediation. The motion in court to enforce a non-existent settlement hearing was rescheduled from November 27, 2023, to December 4, 2023, by the judge, and now new motions have been filed alleging violations of the Open Meetings Act against the OCBOC.
We will first start with the legislative 46.11 (n) hearing which is proceeding into mediation. The OCBOC met for the fifth time in closed session regarding the Hambley 46.11 (n) hearing on November 28, 2023. At the end of the meeting, three motions were made (2:36:42).
Motion 1: “I move to authorize corporate council to arrange and participate in mediation in the Hambley v Ottawa County matter upon the following terms; corporate council has the authority to coordinate with Ms. Hambley’s attorney to select a mediator and the date and time of mediation, and corporate council has not been delegated any authority to make any binding offers, or make a final decision in the Hambley v Ottawa County matter.”
Motion 2: “I move that pursuant to board rule 5.2 that a special committee of five members be formed to participate in mediation in the Hambley v Ottawa County matter upon the following terms; the special committee is only advisory in nature, has not authority to effectuate or formulate public policy. The special committee has not been delegated any decision making authority. The special committee may make recommendations for the full board to review. Any final decision relating to mediation or the Hambley v Ottawa County litigation shall be made by the full board, and the chair will appoint the members of the special committee; including Joe Moss as chair, Sylvia Rhodea, Gretchen Cosby, Allison Miedema, and Doug Zylstra.”
Motion 3: “I move to recess without date to allow mediation to occur, and the hearing will reconvene upon proper notice issued by the chair.”
A mediator is a neutral third party that facilitates communication and negotiation between parties involved in a dispute or conflict. The primary goal of a mediator is to help the parties reach a mutually acceptable agreement or resolution. The mediator does not decide anything, but merely facilitates. Judges typically do not have to approve settlements in these types of cases, and the courts generally will accommodate the process by adjourning any pending hearings as needed. Moving toward mediation shows a desire to reach an agreement.
One day prior to the decision to go into mediation, a court hearing was scheduled with Judge McNeal regarding the enforcement of the non-existent settlement. Attorney Sarah Howard subpoenaed several witnesses to testify, including: Ottawa County Clerk Justin Roebuck, Chair Joe Moss, Commissioner Doug Zylstra, Commissioner Jacob Bonnema, and Commissioner Roger Bergman. Judge McNeal ruled that witnesses would not be allowed. In addition, motions were filed that morning that the judge had not had time to review. Therefore, she rescheduled the hearing to December 4, 2023.
The additional motions from Attorney Howard, allege two separate violations of the Open Meetings Act by the OCBOC, one occurring on October 10, 2023, and the other on November 6, 2023. Board Chairman Joe Moss initially scheduled the 46.11 (n) hearing in accordance with the board rules. During the board meeting on October 10, 2023 (57:37), Commissioner Doug Zylstra raised concern regarding proper procedure for scheduling such a hearing. Commissioner Zylstra referenced Michigan Law 46.10 which required at least one-third of board members to call a special meeting. The meeting then went to recess to enable corporate counsel time to research the matter. Upon returning from closed session, Corporate Counsel Jack Jordan explained, “with the short notice, we don’t have enough time to do proper legal research.” His recommendation was to comply with Michigan Law and reschedule the hearing to a later date in order to provide proper public notice and comply with both board policy and Michigan Law. The board accepted the recommendation and voted. Attorney Howard’s motion accuses the OCBOC of violating the OMA by holding a quorum during the closed session while corporate council was researching.
The other allegation centers on the end of the closed session on November 6, when the commissioners voted to accept the recommendations from corporate council regarding litigation and settlement activities in the case of Adeline Hambley as addressed during closed session. Howard’s second motion states the board did not “adequately describe” the motion that they were voting on, and therefore accuses the OCBOC of violating the Open Meetings Act on this occasion as well.
In my opinion, the two motions filed by Attorney Howard clearly show the aim is not to reach an agreement, but to continue the dispute in front of the public as a political weapon. In public, Hambley proclaims that she is worried about the citizens and the county budget, and yet during negotiations she originally requested EIGHT MILLION DOLLARS to resign. That equates to 64 years’ worth of salary — not exactly looking out for the public’s wellbeing.
It appears that much of Attorney Sarah Howard’s handling of the Hambley negotiation is being done for progressive political purposes that include a top goal of taking down Ottawa Impact Commissioners. In addition to Hambleygate, Howard is involved in several other politically charged Ottawa County disputes, including:
Howard represents Larry Jackson and the Committee to Recall Lucy Ebel. Commissioner Lucy Ebel is one of the six commissioners supported by Ottawa Impact.
Howard represents Andrea Hendrick who is a business woman in the legal marijuana industry, a failed Grand Haven mayoral candidate, and member of the Grand Haven Board of Light and Power (BLP). Andrea Hendrick used her personal email account to conduct BLP business. Emails from Hendrick received via a FOIA request show her involvement working with members of the BLPCCC that attempted to place the BLP under the direction of the Grand Haven City Council. Additional emails from Hendrick have been requested through a subsequent FOIA request, and Howard is involved with determining which emails to provide.
Howard represents an anonymous BLP Whistleblower who claims the BLP deleted emails from the server. Rather than bringing this matter to the BLP board, the claims were brought to City Attorney Ron Bultje and then to Grand Haven City Council. City Attorney Ron Bultje’s daughter, Crystal Bultje, is a partner with Sarah Howard at Pinsky Smith.
Howard represents Reverend Jared Cramer in his complaint against Ottawa County. Cramer alleges religious discrimination against the OCBOC for the injustice of not having been given a turn to lead the invocation at a OCBOC meeting.
Ottawa County is receiving lots of outside attention as the national political parties, biased media, and the machinery of big government work to keep the citizens from reducing their unwanted influences. Lawfare is being used against the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners and others active in reclaiming and preserving liberty, and our biggest counter against this attack is truth. Freedom from government overreach and accountability for that overreach is all we asked for when voting in the commissioners. Those sentiments don’t sit well with some people. Thank you for reading and informing yourself so you too are armed with truth.