Big Cabin sued over restrictions on public attendance at trustee meetings

Big Cabin sued over restrictions on public attendance at trustee meetings

The town of Big Cabin has shut the public out of its meetings since March by limiting attendance to 10 people, including the five trustees, town employees and the mayor’s wife, according to an Open Meeting Act lawsuit filed Thursday by the Craig County clerk and other residents.

The plaintiffs also are challenging the May meeting’s executive session to discuss an “OSBI investigation regarding conduct by members of the Town Board of Trustees.”

The lawsuit asks that a judge order minutes and records of the executive session be made public and declare invalid all trustee votes in the March, April, May and June meetings.

On March 24, Gov. Kevin Stitt issued an amended executive order prohibiting “social gatherings of more than ten people” because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But the number of people attending an in-person public meeting cannot be limited even for social distancing purposes, according to an Oklahoma Attorney General Office advisory issued two days later.

Instead, public bodies should determine if a larger room is needed or use multiple rooms or locations with live audio and video feeds to each, according to the advisory.

Limiting public attendance was an issue Wednesday in Enid. A city press release said no more than 25 members of the public would be allowed to attend the City Council meeting at which a proposed ordinance mandating masks would be deliberated. City officials backed off the limit after being shown the AG advisory, the Enid News & Eagle reported.

In Big Cabin, a notice posted at a City Hall entrance read, “Executive Order from Governor Stitt restricting any gatherings of no more than 10 people at any time till further notice.”

The notice omitted the word social used in the government’s executive orders. But it was used to turn the public away from the town’s March, April, May and June trustee meetings, which were held at 6:30 p.m., according to the lawsuit.

At a special meeting March 24, only the five trustees, City Clerk Linda Purcell, City Attorney Dale Marler, a police officer, a town employee being discussed in an executive session, and the mayor’s wife, Becky Yeoman, were allowed to attend, according to the lawsuit.

For the June 11 regular meeting, a police officer was stationed at the door to keep out the public.

But the AG advisory stressed that public bodies “cannot limit the number of persons who can attend an open meeting.”

“While other laws and regulations, like a fire code or public health guidelines, may limit the number of people allowed in a location, a public body may not use those laws and regulations to limit the number of persons attending an open meeting, whether the meeting is in-person, by videoconference, or by teleconference,” the advisory said. “If there are limits on the number of people who can be in one location, the public body will need to evaluate whether a larger meeting space or additional rooms are needed. If multiple rooms or locations are used, there must be live audio and video feed between the rooms/locations.

“Social distancing guidelines may be met by setting up the location to allow for the recommended distance between persons, even if more than ten people attend. The public body may also need to evaluate whether a larger meeting space or additional rooms are needed to accommodate the spacing. If multiple rooms are used, there must be live audio and video feed between the rooms.”

The governor’s prohibition on “social gatherings of more than 10 people” expired April 30.

Aside from excluding members of the public from the meetings, the trustees also violated the Open Meeting Act by discussing the OSBI investigation behind closed doors, according to the lawsuit. 

To qualify for an executive session, the investigation must “be one the Town is conducting,” the lawsuit argues. “This is an investigation being conducted by the OSBI, not the Town.”

The trustees also violated the statute’s procedures for conducting that executive session by not first determining the confidential communication with the town’s attorney was necessary because a public discussion would “seriously impair” the town’s ability to conduct the investigation, the lawsuit argues.

The trustees are Mayor Sam Yeoman, Tom Trundell, Ed Sullivan, Mike Ryan and Kash Harlan.

The plaintiffs are Craig County Clerk Tammy Malone, Lisa Helm, Dwight Helm,

Marty Kilpatrick, Lisa Johnson, Kim Bass, David Bass, Angella Barlass, Chris Barlass, Sandra Polk and Tom Polk Sr. The lawsuit was filed on their behalf by Vinita attorney Josh D. Lee, a former member of the FOI Oklahoma board of directors.

Joey Senat, Ph.D., Associate Professor, OSU School of Media & Strategic Communications

@Joey_Senat / Mass Communication Law in Oklahoma / Our Right to Know in Oklahoma