Monday night’s Indianola Board of Aldermen meeting began with a 4 to 1 vote to adopt the agenda after a third item was added.
At the onset, Mayor Steve Rosenthal appended with a departmental report and a department head budget request and Alderman Gary Fratesi made the motion to adopt.
However, Alderman Marvin Elder interrupted the vote to add a third item, a status update on the police chief’s position, which altered Fratesi’s motion and Fratesi was not in agreement with the addition.
Elder read a prepared statement before actually requesting the supplemental item be added.
“I feel that some members of this board has been compromised with fear, retaliation and it is my sincere and my utmost opinion that this board handle the business related to the status of the police chief position immediately. I respectfully request that the discussion be added to this agenda tonight titled discussion on status of chief of police position,” Elder said.
Later, in response to Elder’s request, Rosenthal said, “I am excited to say that Chief Hall has agreed to accept the offer that was given to him at our last meeting. He is currently living up to his obligation that he gave Columbus and is taking two weeks of personal time and he will be back full-time on the job come Friday morning.”
Brock asked Rosenthal if that statement completed his report and Rosenthal affirmed that it did.
“We’re not finished because Alderman Elder said we need to know the status. We’ve got too much conflict going, too much conflict with the chief. You can’t serve a full-time job somewhere else and serve a full-time job here, it’s just no way,” Brock said.
Rosenthal again emphasized that Hall was on a two-week leave from the city at no charge to the city.
Rosenthal then asked City Attorney Gary Austin to weigh in on the matter.
“Well I haven’t gotten to the attorney yet,” Brock insisted.
Brock proceeded to infer that Rosenthal was not being completely transparent with the board.
“You’re kinda keeping things, like in a hidden agenda. It must be something going on. I don’t know what it is,” Brock remarked.
Rosenthal said that he has been open and further disclosed that when Elder came by his office last week he told the alderman then that Hall had accepted the city’s offer.
Elder insisted, “That night, you said he didn’t accept it.”
Rosenthal denied the allegation and said he only conversed with Alderman Ruben Woods on the night of the last meeting, and that was to substantiate whether the motion he made to rescind the acceptance of Hall’s resignation included the requested 4-year contract.
An extended dispute followed that resulted in Elder challenging Rosenthal’s truthfulness.
“Mayor, you lying, I’m just going to tell you like this,” he said.
Elder maintained that they (some of the aldermen and citizens) were under the impression that Hall had taken the assistant chief’s position in Columbus based on the knowledge that Hall was sworn in by Columbus officials last week and Rosenthal’s alleged statement that Hall had rejected the offer of $66,000 at their last meeting.
Elder clarified that he wasn’t stating that Hall verbally rejected the offer, but that Rosenthal said he had.
At that, Rosenthal banged the gavel and said, “I want to correct that. I’m not going to be called a liar,” Rosenthal shouted. “You know what, if you can call me a liar, I can call you a liar,” Rosenthal said.
“Well call me one,” Elder replied.
Elder is challenging Hall’s status because he has reportedly been working in Columbus for almost two weeks as of Monday night’s meeting.
“Long story short, when he took oath of office Wednesday, what that meant?” Elder questioned.
It was reported by the Commercial Dispatch in Columbus that their city officials swore in Hall on July 17, however Hall said on Monday that he had submitted his resignation to the Columbus chief.
Elder then asked him, “What time, today?”
Hall responded that he turned his written notice in to the Columbus chief of police last week.
“And I confirmed it,” added Rosenthal.
Elder then replied, “You confirmed it? Somebody’s lying, you (Hall) lying or the mayor lying or your folks in Columbus lying,” said Elder.
Alderman Darrell Simpson then cautioned them on discussing personnel matters in open session, but Elder insisted that the matter was brought before the public at the last meeting.
Rosenthal then asked Austin, “Is there anything improper, illegal, irregular for him to take two weeks off to work in Columbus?”
Austin said there was not.
Unrelenting, Elder asked, “So, Wednesday when all of this took place where was the City of Indianola as far as the chief of police?”
Referencing the fact that Hall’s resignation was rescinded before it actually took effect, Fratesi upheld, “He’s never not been the chief of Indianola.”
Citizen Charles Modley arose to speak and Rosenthal quickly stated, “I know you are in support of him, you’ve already told me twice.”
Modley said he was not in objection to Hall leaving or coming back, but his and the citizen’s concern was over whether or not Hall was working both positions simultaneously.
Rosenthal said working both positions in conjunction could not be done and was not being done.
“If that’s not the issue, we don’t have a problem with it,” Modley said.
In a final attempt to squelch the debate and re-assert his position Rosenthal infused, “Chief Hall is currently chief of the city of Indianola, has accepted the $66,000 that was offered to him, requested more money for his men, which the board chose not to even discuss with him. He is moving forward, I hope the board will to do the same, but we are moving forward, you asked for a status and I gave it to you,” Rosenthal concluded.
