Lawsuit Alleging Lakewood Council Backroom Dealing Dismissed

LAKEWOOD, OH - The Ohio 8th District Court of Appeals dismissed an appeal of a lawsuit against the City of Lakewood and Lakewood's City Council on Thursday. In effect, the 8th District upheld a decision by Cuyahoga Common Pleas Judge Stuart Friedman to dismiss a lawsuit against the City of Lakewood. The lawsuit was brought by Ohio Senator Mike Skindell.

Skindell's lawsuit alleged that city council conducted discussions about the future of Lakewood Hospital behind closed doors, violating Sunshine Laws. The lawsuit further alleges that council never held a public vote or public deliberation about the future of the hospital.

Friedman, in his dismissal, said that any allegations that the city violated the Open Meetings Act are moot in the wake of the Nov. 8, 2016 election that saw voters approve Lakewood Codified Ordinances 49-15, which signed off on a deal between the Cleveland Clinic, Lakewood Hospital, and the City of Lakewood which ultimately replaced Lakewood Hospital with a family health clinic.

In part, Friedman's decision includes this reasoning "...the adoption of Lakewood Codified Ordinances 49-15 by the electorate via the referendum precludes the injunctive relief sought by the appellant."

Friedman also ordered the appellate (Skindell) pay any taxes the city incurred because of the lawsuit.

Neither Skindell or his attorney, Matt Markling, immediately returned requests for comment on the dismissal.

Sam O'Leary, president of council and Ward 2 representative, said the lawsuit was a "political stunt."

"We feel very grateful that the court of appeals also decided to honor the will of Lakewood voters," he said. He added that the ordinance was discussed publicly several times and that the allegations of backroom dealing were "without merit."

To O'Leary's point, there is video of all Lakewood City Council meetings. And one of the council meetings that is under debate is the Dec. 7, 2015 council meeting. Public comment is taking on the proposed ordinance 49-15, which authorizes an agreement between Lakewood, Lakewood Hospital Association, and the Cleveland Clinic.

Skindell, in the lawsuit, characterized the Dec. 7 meeting of council as a press conference that announced the agreement between the three parties that would immediately shut down Lakewood Hospital.

You can watch the video below. If you don't want to watch a nearly two hour video, here's the minutes from the meeting.

"This has been a very contentious issue for our city," O'Leary said. "We are hopeful that with this resolution we can close that chapter of our city’s history and move towards providing 21st century healthcare."

Photo from Rick Uldricks, Patch