By Pat Culverhouse
After Minden’s city council voted unanimously Monday following an executive session to accept Police Chief Jared McIver’s recommendation to terminate Lt. Jason Smith, Smith’s attorney confirmed two appeals will be filed.
Shreveport attorney Pamela Breedlove said one appeal will challenge the council’s decision to go into executive session to discuss the case despite Smith’s desire that discussions be held in public.
Alexandria attorney Aaron Green, representing the city council, advised the panel during their special called meeting to take the matter to executive session. He then successfully objected to Breedlove’s request that discussions on the proposed termination be held in open meeting at her client’s request.
Green advised the council that a provision in the statute governing executive sessions to discuss investigative proceedings regarding misconduct “…does not contemplate any waiver to hold an open meeting.”
“I think their (council) lawyer’s wrong,” Breedlove said.
She had argued that the investigation to which Green referred “… has already occurred, you already have the written recommendation of the chief.”
Breedlove said she has 30 days to appeal the decision citing an open meetings violation. That appeal, she said, will probably be filed in district court.
Breedlove’s second appeal of Smith’s termination will be filed with the civil service board. She has 15 days to file that appeal.
Breedlove also represents former MPD Lt. Chris Hammontree who was recently terminated by the city council on Chief McIver’s recommendation. She has filed an appeal in that case with the civil service board.
Breedlove said she represents a number of officers with the Shreveport Police Department. Citing her experience, she said Smith and Hammontree have been terminated for offenses she believes do not meet standards set by other departments.
“Both of these officers were terminated for reasons that would not be a fireable offense by any other police department in the state,” she said.
“You have a meeting where everybody gets to express their feelings and (Smith) gets fired for it. Hammontree got fired for doing his job,” Breedlove said.