From Staff Reports
A tumultuous few weeks in Apopka came to a sudden and surprising close as Michael Rodriguez, the embattled City Attorney, announced his resignation at the end of the City Council's May 3rd meeting.
Apopka City Attorney Michael Rodriguez.
After the Council discussed his removal during the City Commission Report, Rodriguez made the following statement:
"At this point, I have serious concerns about the directions this council is taking and the means of which certain things have been communicated," he said. "I ultimately fear that I can no longer ethically represent this council. I fear this council may be on the verge of conducting ultra vires actions, and I cannot remain as its city attorney. Therefore I am tendering my resignation so I can save you some money. I will make arrangements with the Human Resources director to finalize the matters. I will save you the time. I will assist in the transition to bring in a successor Council, and I will basically tender my resignation and proceed forward pursuant to Florida State statutes."
A legal phrase used by Rodriguez in his statement, "ultra vires", according to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, is defined as:
"a Latin phrase used in law to describe an act that requires legal authority but is done without it. Its opposite, an act done under proper authority, is intra vires. Acts that are intra vires may equivalently be termed "valid", and those that are ultra vires termed "invalid"."
Rodriguez and Mayor Bryan Nelson were under increased pressure after the City Council voted 3-2 to remove him at the April 5th meeting. Nelson described that vote as ceremonial and retained the city attorney.
"It's just a ceremonial vote," Nelson said on April 14th. "They (the City Council) have no authority to fire anybody."
That shifted the issue into a debate over the wording of the Apopka City Charter.
The City Council, however, saw things differently.
"My interpretation of our Charter permits the collective City Council, of which our Mayor is included as part, the ability to fire the City Attorney, which we did at our last meeting with causes stated by three of the majority members," said Commissioner Kyle Becker. "Clearly, we will need to take further steps to make that a reality. It appears the Mayor seeks the will of our Council only on topics convenient to him."
At the April 22nd meeting, the City Council voted 4-1 to pursue a declaratory judgment to remove Rodriguez.
But the sudden and surprising resignation by Rodriguez brings to a close, at least for now, the battle over the Charter's meaning as it relates to the role of City Attorney and the will of the City Council.
Rodriguez was hired as City Attorney and ratified by the City Council in May 2019.
This is a developing story and will be updated in future editions of The Apopka Voice.
