Meeting law 'violations' spark fuss in Cave Creek

CAVE CREEK - A Cave Creek Councilwoman says she has become a "target of retribution" after submitting a complaint alleging that town staff violated Arizona's Open Meeting Law.

Grace Meeth contacted the Arizona Attorney General's Office in May to report what she considered to be violations of the Open Meeting Law by town officials, according to a document obtained by the Scottsdale Republic.

The law requires public bodies to conduct business in the open and not behind closed doors.

Meeth's complaint accuses town staff members of misrepresenting facts in the bid for two water storage tanks, as well as hiring 12 employees without council approval.

Officials from the Attorney General's Office would not comment on the complaint, but they requested documents from Cave Creek last month as part of an ongoing investigation.

Agenda item questioned

Two months after Meeth's complaint, Cave Creek town attorneys Gary Birnbaum and Cliff Mattice said Meeth herself may have violated the law when she sent a letter to council members in July asking that an item be placed on the agenda for an upcoming meeting.

Town Code states that members can only send such requests to the mayor, town manager and clerk. They must refrain from expressing "personal views" until in a public meeting, Birnbaum and Mattice noted.

Meeth, who was first elected to the council in 1997, said a violation "never occurred."

Nevertheless, town council members held a public meeting on Aug. 4 to "ratify" Meeth's request for the agenda item and ensure that it was legal.

No complaint filed

Befuddled by Meeth's actions, Cave Creek Mayor Vincent Francia said no one has filed a formal complaint against her.

"I don't know why she felt all this is necessary," Francia said.

Meeth has often stood on the fringes at council meetings, questioning staff decision-making and voting against the majority.

Her lawyer, David Bodney, argued in a recent letter that the charge was an attempt to "marginalize" her voice.

Meeth did not violate the Open Meeting Law, Bodney asserted.

"The law prohibits private discussions," said Bodney, a partner with the law firm Steptoe & Johnson, who also represents The Arizona Republic. "But she wasn't hiding anything from anyone."