St. Paul City Council hires law firm to represent mayor, city in sexual harassment lawsuit
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The St. Paul City Council passed a resolution Wednesday to pay for Mayor Kaholy Her and the city’s defense in a lawsuit filed against her by Police Chief Axel Henry.
Henry alleges Her sexually harassed him and that city officials retaliated against him after he complained about her conduct.
City Council President Rebecca Noecker said this is an interim decision and that they’ll vote next week whether to appoint a different law firm. She said they will seek legal counsel to determine whether they will defend the mayor in the future.
“What was in front of us today was a decision about appointing outside counsel to defend the mayor in the interim,” Noecker said. “She has until Oct. 16 to respond to the complaint in front of her, and in this moment, the default is that the city has an obligation to indemnify and defend her.”
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The council appointed law firm Fisher & Phillips to temporarily represent Her and the city, which could cost up to $500 an hour.
“I would rather be spending money on literally anything else right now, and so would the taxpayers of St. Paul, so it is incredibly frustrating that we find ourselves in this situation,” Noecker said.
Noecker said the legal costs will be taken out of the general fund, adding onto the $26 million budget deficit they’re facing. Her proposed a 6.8 percent increase in the property tax levy and other cuts in August to address the shortfall.
When asked if Her should resign, Noecker said she doesn’t think she should.
“I think that she needs to be accountable for her actions, and we will have a due process to figure out what that means,” she said. “I think it's really important that she take responsibility for assuring the public that she can continue to lead the city now and into the future, so that she has a functional relationship with the police department and with all the other departments in the city, and that she can ensure a safe workplace.”
Noecker said they asked the city to release the full investigation report within the week. The city has so far only released a two-page summary of the investigation.
Other council members voice frustrations
During Wednesday’s meeting, council members Molly Coleman, Saura Jost and Cheniqua Johnson voiced their frustrations about the lack of transparency and the timeline of the case.
Coleman said Wednesday’s closed-door session was the first time the city discussed the allegations with the council since Henry accused Her six months ago.
“We are in a horrible position, and we have very few options,” Coleman said. “I am incredibly frustrated by the vote that we are being asked to take today, I'm incredibly frustrated by the timeline on which we are being asked to take it, and the fact that we will be spending unknown sums of money — significant sums of money — defending against claims that we know nothing about, despite the fact that our money has already been used to investigate those very claims.”
Johnson and Jost both echoed Coleman’s remarks about having more transparency. Johnson said if they can’t have transparency, then it'll be the same case for residents.
“Lawsuits take time, but St. Paul cannot afford to wait months and years in which the mayor and the police chief are unable to effectively communicate and lead together,” Johnson said. “If they are not meeting and they are not communicating directly, residents know and need to know what the structure is in place today to ensure that those decisions are being made.”
