Medicine Hat mayor stripped of duties, has pay cut in half over ‘malicious’ questioning of city official

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Medicine Hat’s mayor is facing a slate of sanctions, including a 50 per cent salary reduction and a stripping of nearly all her mayoral duties, after seven of her colleagues agreed she violated council’s code of conduct during a council meeting last summer.

At a special council meeting on Thursday, seven Medicine Hat council members unanimously supported a motion that found Mayor Linnsie Clark had breached their code of conduct bylaw by “failing to treat the city manager with courtesy, dignity and respect” during the Aug. 21, 2023 regular meeting.

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The sanctions suspend Clark from her presiding duties at council meetings, prohibit her from entering the administrative area of Medicine Hat’s city hall and restrict her from having any direct contact with city staff outside of council meetings, according to a news bulletin on the city’s website.

If she is to communicate with the city manager, Clark may only do so via an email that is copied to the rest of council. If the two are to meet in person, another council member must be present during that meeting.

Clark must also publish a letter of reprimand and a request for apology. She will no longer be the official spokesperson for council and will no longer attend meetings of the city’s administration committee.

As a result of her stripped duties, Clark’s salary has been cut in half.

Mayor calls sanctions ‘shocking and absolutely disproportionate’

Clark, who was not at Thursday’s meeting, blasted the sanctions imposed upon her in a social media response, which hinted she might consider legal action against the city.

In a Facebook post, she said she found council’s sanctions “shocking and absolutely disproportionate.”

“I am reviewing my legal options and expect to be in a position to provide a further public response after I have done so,” she said.

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Formerly a lawyer for the City of Medicine Hat’s legal department, Clark successfully ran for mayor during the 2021 municipal election, collecting 66 per cent of the vote and ousting incumbent Ted Clugston. She was the city’s first female mayor, according to reporting from the Medicine Hat News.

But Clark’s popularity has taken a hit since her landslide election victory, exemplified by a recall petition submitted by a resident against her last fall. That recall effort fell far short of the province’s threshold, however, garnering approximately 8,000 signatures of a required 26,000.

In her Facebook post on Thursday, Clark said she ran on a “platform of change” on behalf of Medicine Hat residents who were concerned about administrative overreach and “poor governance” at city hall.

“I stand by those principles,” she wrote. “I believe holding the city’s administration to account is the role of council. I gave up my job as a lawyer for the city to fight for what I believe is right for Medicine Hat. That is what I did, and will continue to do that now.”

What led to the sanctions?

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The sanctions imposed upon Clark stem from a tense exchange between her and city manager Ann Mitchell at the Aug. 21, 2023, council meeting.

At that meeting, Clark pressed Mitchell for several minutes when council was discussing the city’s administrative reorganization. Clark argued the process followed by the city was improper.

In response, Mitchell described the mayor’s line of questioning as “an inquisition.”

“I think this is highly inappropriate and I’d like to stop this discussion right now,” Mitchell said.

“This isn’t a question period. This is a diatribe and I’m probably more offended than you are.”

After that meeting, council voted to retain Kingsgate Law, an Edmonton-based law firm, to investigate a complaint from a council member that Clark had contravened council’s code of conduct bylaw.

‘No need for that line of questioning’

Andy McGrogan, a Medicine Hat councillor, said the situation has been unfortunate, but that Clark’s conduct at the meeting last summer warranted the unprecedented sanctions.

“There was really no need for that line of questioning,” he told Postmedia Thursday. “I don’t want to use the word malicious, but it seemed to be … just an opportunity to voice her displeasure. She knew the answers to the questions she was asking.”

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The report from Kingsgate will eventually be accessible to the public via a FOIP request, McGrogan added, but will have to first require redactions.

“I understand some people might not think the severity of the sanctions equate to the actions,” he said. “We understand that.

“We obviously sought legal advice on the matter and were guided through it. Again, it goes back to the totality of the incident, and to some degree, all of us knowing what led up to it. The investigational report is fairly clear.”

In a statement, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs said it is aware of the sanctions imposed on Clark, and that the Municipal Government Act requires every municipality in Alberta to establish a code of conduct bylaw.

“The Code of Conduct for Elected Officials Regulation sets out requirements for the complaint system within a code of conduct bylaw, as well as sanctions which may be imposed for violations of a code of conduct bylaw,” the statement read.

“The Municipal Government Act does not provide the Minister of Municipal Affairs with any role in the adjudication of sanctions imposed by a council under a code of conduct bylaw.”

Medicine Hat council’s next regular meeting is on April 8.

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