The Sarasota City Commission plans to discuss at its next meeting whether to pay the legal expenses of board member Kyle Battie after he falsely accused a local activist of calling him a racial epithet.
City Attorney Robert Fournier said that the item he added to the Feb. 5 meeting agenda will be the first step for the commission to determine their plan in dealing with an expected lawsuit against Battie.
“The prospect of a lawsuit against an individual commissioner raises the issue of the responsibility for payment of attorney fees to outside counsel to provide a defense,” the agenda item’s explanation says. “The City Attorney will make a presentation to the City Commission regarding its options and responsibilities under the law in this regard.”
The issue stems from a Jan. 16 meeting during which Battie introduced an unexpected agenda item called “Unfinished Business: Civility, Respect, and Rhetoric discussion.” He then accused Kelly Franklin of referring to him as a gorilla in a Facebook post.