Ethics Violation Alleged In Milton

Mayor accused of giving own opinion as the city's

By DOUG NURSE / The Atlanta Journal-Constitution / Published on: 06/14/07

The latest chapter in the sparring between the mayor of Milton and members of the council is an ethics complaint against the mayor. His alleged crime? The mayor unilaterally — and incorrectly — informed the governor that city leaders opposed a bill approved by the Georgia Legislature.

Among other things, the legislation amended Milton's city charter to weaken the powers of the mayor.

Bob Moheb, a city planning commissioner, wrote in his complaint filed late last week that he believed Mayor Joe Lockwood had violated a provision in the city ethics code that says, "No public servant shall falsely represent his or her personal opinion to be the official position of the city and no public servant shall falsely represent his or her personal opinion to be the official position of any board or city administrators."

"In my opinion," Moheb wrote, "our elected officials should be held to a higher standard than the rest, and for this reason I think this is something worth looking into and should be investigated."

Lockwood said he believed he accurately was conveying the City Council's views based on feedback he received during a work session on May 5.

"I didn't try to mislead anyone," Lockwood said. "He [Moheb] seems to think I acted on my own. I think it's politically motivated. It's frivolous, and I'm disappointed."

The ethics code also states: "This shall not apply to statements of elected officials made in the course of fulfilling the responsibilities of their offices."

At the behest of state Rep. Jan Jones (R-Milton), the General Assembly passed four bills altering the new city's charter, and sent them to Gov. Sonny Perdue.

The governor's office called Lockwood for his opinion. He asked Perdue to veto the legislation.

The governor's office wanted a response in writing that afternoon, so without following up with the City Council, Lockwood sent a letter to Perdue, saying the city opposed the changes.

At the very next meeting, the City Council voted 4-3 to ask the governor to approve the changes. The governor did so.

This is the second ethics complaint filed against City Council members since the city was founded Dec. 1. The first complaint was filed by Leon Cole against City Council members Neal O'Brien and Bill Lusk after they instructed the clerk to notify the press about a campaign fund-raiser in which a quorum of the council was expected.

An investigation by the city attorney determined they did not violate the prohibition against city officials using city resources for personal gain as alleged.