Updated
Though the meeting agenda indicated that the Commission would take action on the issue, no action was taken. Goad said this was the case because the Ethics Board operates independently.
Meadows-Keefe said the Board plans to advertise the position for 30 days and interview candidates in November.
Original Story
The City Commission addressed the need for a new Chief Ethics Officer at their Sept. 11 meeting.
Current Ethics Officer Julie Meadows-Keefe announced her resignation at the Jul. 16 Ethics Board meeting amid criticism of her actions in the position. Her resignation will take effect no later than Feb. 21, 2020.
The Commission discussed an agenda item to “authorize advertisement and double-fill of the Chief Ethics Officer position for a period of up to two months.”
The Ethics Board had planned an overlap in which the new candidate and Meadows-Keefe would both work in the position at the same time. The Board stated this approach would allow the new hire to get familiar with the responsibilities of the job faster than normal.
City Manager Reese Goad said he met with the Ethics Board after the meeting agenda was published. At this meeting, the Board indicated that they did not intend to double-fill the position, though the agenda indicated that this was the case.
Meadows-Keefe also said at the meeting that the Board does not currently intend to double-fill the position.
“They would like to have a similar individual in the role for my successor,” Meadows-Keefe said. “We are simply waiting for the job to post so the board can do its process.”
The fiscal impact of the double-fill would have been an estimated $25,000 in addition to the $402,000 the City gives the Ethics Office from the General Fund.
As noted in the meeting agenda, the “City of Tallahassee provides payroll, benefits, and other administrative services to the Independent Ethics Office including Human Resource services.”
The Ethics Officer serves as executive director of the Independent Ethics Board, which formed in November 2014. Board responsibilities include running an ethics hotline for fraud and corruption reports.
The Ethics Officer responsibilities include managing the citywide ethics and fraud hotline, coordinating ethics training, referring ethics and corruption concerns to appropriate enforcement agencies, conducting initial reviews of ethics complaints, and supervising other employees of the Board.
The Ethics Board hires, supervises, and evaluates the Ethics Officer.
City Commission Considers “Double-Fill” of Chief Ethics Officer Position added by Lexie Pitzen on
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This is a case of the unethical rooster guarding the unethical henhouse. Those who know the real story about her philandering are not surprised she is pulling out Marie Mattox as her pit bull to spin the story in her favor in hopes of getting enough money and health insurance to coast for a while until she takes the next employer for a ride.
What you have written is false. I’m not in her family or her. SHE is trying to move on. SHE would not be reading this garbage anyway, or I hope not. Someone needed to try and stand up for her. People are starting to and it’s about time. If you know her, give her a call and check her out Don’t air your lies on a ragsheet. Ask the other person who got beat up by this guy how he’s doing. He’s a walking timebomb.
This lady was assaulted and the man is defended. Guy was a walking time bomb who at one point had 2 injunctions pending for violence. Democrat reported it. Where was Tallahassee Reports? Female judge believed her. Good old boy male didn’t. What else is new? She did a brave thing in coming forward and was shamed. Typical. She’s a hero for all the public shaming. It’s why more women don’t report.
Lizzi are you really Julie Meadows Keefe or a relative? No Lizzie or is it Julie I am not a friend of his ex wife I know you Julie through people you used to work with and have know several of the people you currently work with for years. Why you did not show the evidence you say you have when you were in court? What could you possibly be saving it for? Obviously you are lying again because there is no evidence. Is what JJ says true about him changing his number because you were calling him so often? How do you explain that? I have been stalked and sexually harassed but thankfully never assaulted and there is no way I would ever talk to much less keep trying to reignite a relationship with the person who stalked and sexually harassed me and assault is way way worse than what I had to go through. Stop trying to recreate the truth people are not defending him people are calling you out for the liar and fraud you are Julie. You are anything but a hero. Heros do not make false allegations heros do not skip out on their job responsibilities. Have you ever actually investigated anyone besides the former police chief who had an extramarital affair with a subordinate? I guess now we know why you found no wrong doing there. How ironic is that? How could you not see what the last city manager was doing was wrong with the football tickets? If you saw it why did you not stand up and say something? Why do you continually pass the buck when it comes to complaints to your office? No that is nothing remotely close to a hero. It is actually false allegations like the ones you have made against a man you pursued and intentionally chose to have an affair with that make it harder for women who have truly been assaulted to be believed. That is the problem not everyone else. Own you own mistakes and stop blaming everyone else like you have a history of doing throughout your career. Move on from the City and stop stealing our hard earned tax money we do not get raises every year like you do we work hard for what we have and do not get a free pass in our jobs when we do nothing like you have done for the last several years. Then again you are the ideal person to be the unethical officer because you are unethical at every turn. I heard you and Scott Maddox were friends. How close were you how much did you know about what he was doing? Why did you not call him out for what he was doing?
It is amazing how many people sit there and do nothing at glaring overreaches and outright corruption for years and yet they feel the need rather than call out actual perpetrators they victimize a woman in a position who has little or no authority to govern corruption.
Leon County has big problems like the crime rate it is out of control yet does anyone say anything about the mayor doing nothing about it because he is out there making illegal car commercials misusing his position?
Does anyone say anything about the County Administrator meeting with Waste Pro and Scott Maddox and therefore should immediately have disqualified Waste Pro for consideration for the county contract? They give the contract to Waste Pro! Are you kidding me and no one says zip?!
Does Proctor live in his district? Silence is golden…
Has Curtis Richardson divulged what was in the text he sent to the new commissioner? Curtis should be sidelined and put on leave until he does or resign. Yet, no one says anything!
And the worst one was the way Sheriff Campbell participated in corruption and other activities misused his office and was the worst crime fighter in the United States and no one said anyting. Mary Ann Lindley once said that he is just merely a figurehead without any real power. Are you kidding me?! And she is now a county commissioner which explains a lot about the situation the city and county are now in.
Is anyone perfect? Do people make mistakes? I am sick and tired of people sitting there and doing nothing when men are participating in full-blown corruption and yet the men turn on this woman when they are either participating in their own corruption or say nothing about full blown out corruption.
Until people speak out about the County Administrator and the mayor and Curtis Richardson and their Shenanigans then sit down and be quiet. Enough!
This lady was assaulted and has suffered while man has walked with two pensions. Leave her alone. Trumpers on her from day one. Brutal and cruel.
Two WRONGS don’t make a Right…………..
She was not assaulted. She is a very super smart woman who is a strong person who had a long and ongoing extramarital affair with someone she was supposed to be overseeing from an ethics standpoint. That point alone goes to her ethics and why she should have been removed from her job. Only when her husband and the public found out did she claim the harassment. Her accusations of harassment were rejected by a court of law. From what I have personally seen she was quite comfortable with the guy and others who are friends of hers and her husband have said she actually initiated contact with the City employee and she was the aggressor. I really liked her when she was initially hired and happy someone with her background was the ethics officer. Her actions have deeply disappointed me as she was someone I looked up to.
She did not allege harassment. He initiated the relationship and his erratic actions started right away. And, again, she never alleged harassment. She alleged violent assault and many were disappointed Old Boy Judge believed another Old Boy and his Old Boy lawyer. Female Judge believed her as did many in the advocacy community. And how many Old Boys listen to Preston and his garbage. Preston and his followers gave her nothing but hate from day she started. Preston, have her on your show. She’s being encouraged when she’s out of the job to SPEAK LOUD. She’d destroy you. Wonderful how Trumpers condone Adultery when it’s their second Coming baby Jesus, but stone a woman to death for even a hint.
AMEN!!
I think there are even Trumper’s who are appalled at the treatment she has received.
Who was the old boy judge?
He’s got a column in Democrat. No woman should vote for him
She initiated the relationship. She was the aggressor. She was not assaulted. She has a history of claiming allegations when things do not go her way. Usually she claims harassment but she went all in this time. She is a manipulator and a deceit. Talk to people inside City Hall who know and work with her and then talk to people she used to work with prior to becoming the unethical officer. You will get the same story about who she really is. She had people inside City Hall on her side ready to stand up for her until they started talking to each other and realized she was giving them vastly different versions of the events and things started to not add up in her story. I have never met the judge and I suspect he probably is a despicable old boy as you suggest but what she claimed did not stand up when evidence was presented against her especially since she was caught stalking the city guy after he broke up with her. She was threatened with a restraining order if she did not stop and it was then that other people found out including her husband so she decided to save face and go to court with an accusation of assault. I would like to hear his version of the story but I probably would not believe him any more than I do her. We should get together sometime you would not believe the stories her former coworkers have shared. It is people like her who make it hard on true victims of violent crime to ever gain any credibility.
She has proof she’s held onto. I am glad this is getting aired out became the man has been spared the public humiliation she has endured. Cyndy you are probably a friend of his EX wife who is still spreading false information even though she got a fat settlement. He isn’t the man people thought. She isn’t either but doesn’t deserve all the bull she’s been put through by people who know nothing. I’m done commenting. She’ll do great no matter what people say
I actually heard similar things but the most interesting was he had to change his phone number because she would not stop calling and texting him even after her case was dismissed. From what I have heard she was definitely the aggressive one and she became obsessively aggressive once they broke up. I have met her and talked to her and that woman is bonkers.
The City could not do better than immediately hiring Catherine Baer as the new ethics officer. She was one of the original members of the Citizens for Ethics Reform and has led on issues related to the new proposed ethics ordinance from the beginning. She would not need on-the-job training and would provide outstanding independent leadership on all ethics matters. See https://www.tallahassee.com/story/opinion/2019/08/30/city-commission-needs-approve-new-ethics-policy-now-opinion/2147544001/
WHY are you allowing her to wait until the end of February to Resign? As soon as she handed in her Resignation you should have made it TWO WEEKS and NOT 7 Months.
“The Board has stated this approach will allow the new hire to get familiar with the responsibilities of the job faster than normal.”
Because what better way to learn the job than from the person who was just fired for being…..Unethical!!!!!! I need a new home town, this one sucks…
She was not fired. She resigned.
So instead of one person who does NOTHING we will have two who do NOTHING. The worst thing is for Keefe to train the new person. Word is she is NEVER at the office and when she is there she does not do anything. Look no further than the last city managers football tickets. She just stood there and watched as someone under the city manager determined the city manager broke no laws. Is this the type of person we want to train the next person. Not me. This ethics office has turned into a joke doing nothing but wasting tax payers money. Fire Keefe shut down the office and save our money. Gillum is gone Scott is gone and on his way to prison the new commissioners seem capable of keeping city employees in check and if not we can vote them out or file an ethics complaint with the state ethics board. We were duped on this one and it is time we abolish the ethics office before they start adding more employees who do nothing. Surely I am not the only one who sees how we were tricked into creating an ethics office.
Yes my name isStanley SIMS and I NEVER thought I would EVER post these words on my friend Steve Page…. I TOTALLY AGREE WITH All THESE COMMENTS!!! Even You BIll!!!
Hire the new one and get the old one to show him or her the way things are done?? Instruction by incompetence? Has the board lost all its sense?
I wouldn’t call it “instruction.”
I would call it “evidence.”
At what point will those involved in questionable ethical issues be held accountable. When will the Ethics Board recommendations be adopted, why the delay? Until we get a new Chief Ethics Officer? Then, fire her.
When are applications being accepted? I’ll do the job, do not need a babysitter, and I will do it for half of the proposed ridiculous salary. I will let the Board, as Gwen Graham likes to say, do their job. #ready
Wrong:
The double fill will have a fiscal impact of around One Million American Dollars.
The only reason this scam is being played is so Meadows-Keefe can cross the finish line on becoming vested for the retirement plan.
That is gonna cost the TAXPAYERS around One Million American Dollars (not the City…the Taxpayers).
Agreed Snidely. She was compromised the moment she was handed the job. She provided cover until the lot of them were out of office. Does it strike anyone as unusual that the ethics officer really found no issues of concern on her watch, yet the FBI has already secured guilty pleas with more likely indictments to come? To allow her to choose her own departure date to obtain taxpayer dollars is insulting and could itself be unethical. Ironic.
Be careful Preston your misogyny is showing. You supported one of the most notorious worst inept incompetent buffoons as our Sheriff and you pick on this poor woman relentlessly.
Not only did you look the other way at Sheriff Campbell’s incompetence you exalted him and looked the other way and look where our crime rate is today.
The Mike Williams case should have been solved within months, but Larry Campbell was too busy protecting perverts and using them to attack and terrorize his whistleblowers that exposed his corruption.
The extent of Campbell’s damage cost misuse of offices in the state attorney’s office, the Attorney General’s office, the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, the judicial system and the Supreme Court System. How one man could reach such Havoc is unbelievable because people like you do what they do pick on the wrong person.
When you expose corruption in this town you are terrorized by the powers-that-be and finally the feds have come in and started to clean it up because people like you look the other way… people like the state attorney look the other way and so on and so forth.
Well, Campbell should have been solving the Mike Williams case he was Paving the way for this pervert to terrorize Leon County.
https://miami.cbslocal.com/2019/08/09/florida-man-liquor-store-clerk-hey-look-at-this-pulls-out-penis/
Spare me…dumping out the “mysogyny” label is what illiberals do to distract. Stay on point. This story is not about any Sheriff. It’s about ineptitude. She was the least qualified of all of the candidates and she was hand-picked for that reason. Lila Jaber was placed on the board to “guide” her. These are facts born out by the record. Good grief she was, in fact, hired by the very people she was supposed to hold accountable. The next time there is a story about former Sheriffs of Leon County have at it.
Give it a break! You’re a petty misogynist who is leaning towards being a bully. Your pettiness is just unreal going on and on relentlessly ad nauseam about this woman and providing cover for the most inept sheriff in the United States who did great harm to this community is unbelievable. Check yourself, Preston!
Not only that I would run over to DCF and pull this man’s personnel file and see what power who be provided him a reference because this is where he got a job after he terrorized Sheriff Campbell’s whistleblowers.
This lady was assaulted and has suffered while man has walked with two pensions. Leave her alone. Trumpers on her from day one.
People who followed the process know the truth and you continue to avoid the facts about her hiring and running of the ethics office while nearly everyone who was under her ethical eye is no longer in office. You continue to redirect against a man who has passed away and is not part of the story.
Sad.
Whether the ethics officer is a man or woman is irrelevant, but you continue to inject gender (like it matters) with your name calling. Another symptom of what happens when the facts line up against folks like yourself…call people names. Classic. BTW: I post under my real and full name…I do not engage in childish name calling and hide in anonymity.
And that is why no one listens to your show because of your ridiculous pompous arrogant mindset causing you to lose all credibility.
OK…you’re right. No one has been listening for eighteen years. I guess the ratings all these years, including the most recent ones, are all wrong. Regardless, the success and longevity of the show has little to do with me, but with the information presented which includes the reporting contained in this website/paper.
I listen to your Show, Blue Boy in the Bowl is Cool……….
This lady was violently assaulted by the official who skated with Taxpayer funded pension from City and state and has new state job. You Trumpers like Jackson and others think women are objects to be used. You are disgusting
So where does Gwen Graham stand on this?
Oh my bad…she’s in hiding and avoiding any questions.
Oh boy…thank you Florida for not electing Gwen as Governor.
Thank God we avoided the Gwen and Andy Governor bullets.