Civil Rights & Constitutional Law
Cleveland Scene sues Downtown Cleveland Alliance for removing 26 distribution boxes from downtown
April 13, 2017
Tuesday, January 17, 2017
EAST CLEVELAND, OHIO - Today, the East Cleveland City School District board of education committed to concrete actions to comply with Ohio's open-government laws, correct past violations, and reimburse Dr. Patricia A. Blochowiak, a board member, $100,000 in attorneys' fees and costs incurred in her whistleblower action forcing the board's legal compliance.
Ohio's Open Meetings Act is a "sunshine law" creating open and transparent government. To ensure public access to government, the law requires, with limited exceptions, that public bodies take action and deliberate on official business only in meetings open to the public. A meeting occurs when a public body's majority discusses public business in a prearranged gathering, even if it's an informal one. Meetings require public notice. And the body must prepare full and accurate minutes, so the public knows what happened. Closed-door discussion away from public view in "executive session" is permitted only for certain specified reasons.
Dr. Blochowiak, an elected board member since 2008, sued the board in 2014. The suit alleged that the board had committed numerous open-government violations, including engaging in improper decision-making behind closed doors, and keeping incomplete and inaccurate minutes that did not disclose to the public how decisions were made. One allegation involved decisions about a board-organized, one-day carnival that cost taxpayers over $20,000.
The settlement agreement requires the board to take measures including the following:
The agreement does not release the board from any potential claims Dr. Blochowiak might have against it for baseless, petty "censures" of her. These censures resulted from Dr. Blochowiak's taking students to the natural-history museum after school with parental permission; hugging a distraught child; and sharing information in consultation with her own lawyer.
Subodh Chandra, Dr. Blochowiak's lead counsel, said, "This agreement holds the board accountable for betraying the promise of open government, and is a victory for democracy. Schoolchildren and their families deserve to know and understand their public officials' decisions—good and bad—and how they made those decisions."
The suit is Blochowiak v. East Cleveland City School District Board of Education, Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, No. 14-828211. The court retains jurisdiction to enforce the agreement.
Linked below is a copy of the final, signed, court-enforceable settlement agreement that the Board approved:
2017-01-17 Blochowiak v. East Cleveland School District Board of Education FINAL SIGNED SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.pdf
Chandra, Sandhya Gupta, and Patrick Haney of The Chandra Law Firm LLC, www.ChandraLaw.com, represent Dr. Blochowiak.
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