Introduction

[The Agenda of the December 1, 2008 regular meeting of the Village of Monticello Board of Trustees is posted on carmenrue.com. Digital Audio of the proceedings of this august legislative body can be downloaded from the same website, in your choice of three different file formats.

The following unofficial summaries are provided for the convenience of online viewers. Anyone with an official or personal interest in the detailed content and precise context are invited download and view the full video and audio files, as well as speaking with individuals involved in the events herein described.]

Segment 1

All: "I pledge allegience to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Roll call: All board members are present.

Approval of minutes.

Manager's report (see video for details).

Trustee Marinello commends the Sullivan County Federation for the Homeless for its recent Thanksgiving dinner.

Discussion of Empire Estates. Trustee Rue corrects a motion on the agenda to state that money will be placed in escrow by the developer, not by the Village. Correction made. Carried.

Segment 2

Continued discussion of the Empire Estates project.

Public comment (agenda items only).

A motion is duly made and seconded to relieve Mr. Barbarite of his responsibilities as Village Manager. Discussion ensues. Maker and seconder demand a vote. Refusing, the Mayor calls for private executive session. The Village Attorney opines that two motions can be on the table at one time.

The meeting devolves into chaotic shouting by members of the audience, most audibly by the Mayor's relatives. Little if any attempt is made to restore public order.

The Mayor threatens: "Before you make your decision, Scott, and the public out here, is that, um, Scott Schoonmaker has got his own -- how can I say it? He's got some personal problems in this Village that he is, as far as I'm concerned, Mr. Schoonmaker should resign from this board because he is being coerced by certain people out here. And you know something? If Mr. Barbarite is, if Mr. Barbarite is, if Mr. Barbarite is taken off this board today, I become the manager. And you know what's going to happen? You are going to put this board one year behind in what's happening in this Village. And do you know who's going to answer that? The board members will have to answer as to why there's nothing going on in this Village. And there are going to be lawsuits. And we're going to tie this Village to nothing. And you will see tomorrow, if I do become Village Manager, you will see will this Village shut down. And your taxes will go nowhere. So you people out there should start raising sand about what this board's trying to do. Because you will not get nothing for your money but nothing. I become the boss. You know something? You're gonna see a boss. You can not get-- You know something? We're gonna downsize tomorrow in this Village and we're gonna make drastic changes tomorrow and it's gonna be by the Village Manager if I become boss tomorrow."

Relatives of the Mayor resume shouting. Tom Rue asks if public comment is permitted at this time. The Mayor replies, "No." The Mayor's sister, Postmaster Debbie Mack, shouts back, apparently attempting to ask if "the man" is qualified to be Village Manager. Tom Rue points out that Mrs. Mack and the Mayor's girlfriend, Rochelle Massey, who has also been speaking out of turn, are both members of the public. Ms. Massey shouts from across the room, "Shut up!"

In response to the women's remarks, the camera pans across the meeting room, showing the entire audience. Postmaster Debbie Mack shouts and points her finger, "Point the camera at someone else, Tom, on the meeting. I don't see the camera on no one else here. Is this a prejudiced thing?"

The Mayor asks for order. The attorney publicly advises the board to recess the meeting and go into executive session.

Mayor Jenkins states: "I would like to take your advice, uh, Mr. Attorney, because you know something? There will be a big recourse. We don't need another lawsuit because of something, negligence. We can prevent something that's happening because there is going to be a big recourse. I'd like to take it into executive session before we say something here that we will be tied up with another lawsuit."

Seconded by Trustee Hutchins. Trustee Schoonmaker objects, demanding that the board vote on the motion which is on the table and has been seconded.

Segment 3

Chaotic shouts from the audience persist, again most audibly by relatives of Mayor Jenkins and Trustee Hutchins.

The Manager tosses an alleged transcript of a tape-recorded phone conversation between Trustees Rue and Trustee Marinello (which neither of them knew was being recorded), "for your information."

Trustee Rue responds that the wire-tap was secret, illegal, and the Attorney General's office is already investigating the Village. She describes Barbarite's use of the illegally transcribed conversation to advance his own interests as a coercive threat which is intended to influence the board's vote. She shows Mr. Barbarite a CD which she says contains evidence of allged illegal activity in the Village, which she tells him has already been given to authorities. Trustee Marinello reads Barbarite's telephone transcript without commenting.

The Mayor's girlfriend, Rochelle Massey, screams at Trustee Schoonmaker from the floor, "What's the big secret, Scott?"

The Mayor accuses, "Mrs. Rue and Scott Schoonmaker are destroying this Village because of payback politics."

"What's happening here is nothing but payoff on this board. You will see it," he asserted. The Mayor's brother-in-law asks, again without being called on, for a Federal investigation of the administration of the Village of Monticello. The Mayor concurs, "Yes, we should have a Federal investigation!"

The Mayor forewarns the Board of Trustees and the public that he will not, or can not, perform his official duties, if the role of Acting Village Manager should fall to him, threatening economic harm to the Village and individual employees if the Manager is fired; again demanding "a Federal investigation"; followed by uncontrolled rowdy shouting from the audience.

The Mayor's girlfriend, Rochelle Massey, appears to make an obscene gesture in the direction of the video camera.

The Mayor's brother-in-law, Tommy Mack, says, "We got to pay for it anyway as taxpayers."

Mayor Jenkins responds to his brother-in-law, Mr. Mack, by urging him to sue the Village ("Take the Board to court"), repeating his call to vote on the question of going into an executive session while forbidding a vote on the already pending motion.

"That's what's gonna happen. That's what's gonna happen. That's what's gonna happen. That's what's gonna happen. Take the board to court. I say take it into executive session. because this is a serious matter. When this is done, there's no way you can turn it back," yells the Mayor.

Trustee Marinello states, "I call the question."

The Mayor replies, "I say take it to executive session."

The video photographer (this writer) approaches the Village Attorney and to his face voices the opinion that he is being negligent and committing legal malpractice by advising the Mayor that it is permissible to ignore a motion, a second, and a demand by two Trustees to bring a question that is on the table to a vote first before moving onto another motion.

Despite all this, the Mayor calls a vote for an executive session (which passes 3 to 2). This lasts about 90 minutes.

As the board departs, the Mayor's brother-in-law, Mr. Mack, hollers, "Come on back. We all family here!"

Board exits, stage right, as disorganized shouting continues.

While board members and the Village Attorney head out to a lengthy back-room executive session, Liberty attorney Gerald Orseck, who represents several taxpayers in separate pending Federal civil rights lawsuits, smiles and passingly remarks of the video, "This is worth a million bucks tonight."

Meanwhile, the Village Manager (who has been excluded from the executive session because the topic purportedly involves his proposed termination) can be seen consulting with the Mayor's sister, Debbie Mack, and a few others.

Segment 4

The public board meeting appears to reconvene at about 8:40 PM, according to the clock on the wall.

Trustee Schoonmaker asks for "a two-minute recess" to confer with Village Attorney Jacob Billig. They return. The Village Attorney smiles and waves at the video camera. He advises the board to take an action. Mr. Schoonmaker amends the motion to fire the Manager to suspend the Manager for a month, with pay, "until this matter is addressed and put to rest." Trustee Hutchins objects to giving the Manager a paid vacation.

The Village Attorney advises the Board of Trustees in public, "You can do that if you want," but does not cite any statute or reference from the Village Code permitting a suspension.

Audience resumes unrestrained shouting and applause, most audibly by the Mayor's brother-in-law and girlfriend.

The Mayor again promises chaos if the Manager is fired, assuming the board would allow him to be the Acting Village Manager: "I'm going to forewarn all of the taxpayers. you're going to have a lot of chaos, if you see John Barbarite -- Because no one is going to control this village. But you know something? But tomorrow you will see how this village will-- We're going to downsize domorrow. Let's have the vote, and we'll go from tomorrow. Let's go. What do you want to do, Scott? Let's see what we're going to do."

The Mayor's girlfriend interrupts, calling on Mr. Schoonmaker to reveal "the secret ". More shouting by the Mayor's brother-in-law and other audience members ensues. Trustee Scott Schoonmaker tells the Mayor's relatives and friends in the audience to stop making accusations without facts to back them up. Trustee Rue asks that the meeting be brought to order. Trustee Schoonmaker says that every board member has an obligation and the right to form their own opinion, and to be respected.

An audience member, without being recognized to speak, shouts out that each member of the Village Board of Trustees "is an employee of the citizens of Monticello." Trustee Schoonmaker asks the unrecognized speaker if he is an attorney. The speaker replies no; he is a taxpayer.

Incomprehensible disorderly shouts from the audience ensue, with no attempt by the Mayor to bring order.

Segment 5

The unrecognized speaker claims that if the Manager is going to be fired, it is "personal" and should not be on the table for discussion in an Open Meeting. Trustee Schoonmaker explains that the speaker does not have his facts together.

Mayor Jenkins accuses, "You created the mess in this Village, Carmen. That's the problem here."

The Village Attorney publicly advises, "Stop. This is not a back-and-forth dialogue. Let the board conduct its business. They are allowed to have executive session legally. Let them conduct their business, and that's it. They're the elected officials."

The Mayor's brother-in-law shouts in agreement, again without being recorgnized to speak, "That's right. That's right."

The Mayor wonders, "Where are we at on the vote here?"

Trustee Schoonmaker explains,"We just went into executive session. We came out of executive for a reason, and you all know why we can't take a vote. The resolution is we now have one other thing, and that's to rescind it. That's common sense. Am I right, Mr. Attorney?."

Mr. Hutchins suggests amending Mr. Schoonmaker's motion. The Village Attorney asks if Mr. Schoonmaker intends to rescind his motion. Trustee Schoonmaker replies, "On the basis of what happened in executive session, yes. Yes. Do you see any other way around it?"

The Village Attorney responds with the publicly given advice, "Based on what you're tell me, no."

Trustee Schoonmaker moves to rescind his motion; seconded by Mayor Jenkins; carried on a roll call vote.

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The board votes to replace a card reader in the amount of $1,163.54, for a light to gas tracking system.

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Discussion of a shared diesel tank at the Town of Thompson. Trustee Rue provides an e-mail she received from Town of Thompson Supervisor Anthony Cellini asking for immediate action, as required by NYS Audit and Control, regarding the installation of a meter on a fuel tank which the Town of Thompson has graciously shared with the Village for over a year. Trustee Rue asks that Supervisor Cellini receive a formal update on progress toward resolving this.

The Manager claims he talked "talked to Tony" on 11/4. The Village Attorney suggests assigning "1 or 2 board members" to meet with Mr. Cellini. Trustee Rue moves to immediately send a written progress update to Supervisor Cellini. Trustee Marinello proposes a joint meeting of the Village and Town Boards to resolve the issue.

Segment 6

Discussion continues of the Manager's failure, up to this point, to respond to the Town Board's requirement (which reportedly resulted from a NYS audit and control mandate) that the Village install a meter on a diesel fuel tank at the Town Highway Barn, in order to be continued to allow to share fuel storage facilities with the Town.