The Committee to Recall Jamelle McKenzie
What is happening with the recall?
On July 31st, 2024, two days after it was submitted, the Deputy City Clerk of College Park accepted our application for recall of Councilwoman Jamelle McKenzie. We collected 233 signatures, more than doubling the required amount, in just one week.
The next day, on August 1st, Councilwoman Jamelle McKenzie challenged the recall in court, putting a temporary hold on our next step, which is to collect signatures on the actual petition. Her lawsuit was filed against Mose James, chair of the Committee to Recall Jamelle McKenzie, as well as Deputy City Clerk Queenie Brown. The councilwoman’s suit claims that Ms. Brown favors the recall because she turned around the signature verification so quickly, when in reality Ms. Brown only had five days, by law, to verify signatures.
On September 18, the Committee to Recall Jamelle McKenzie filed our response, which was immediately accepted. In it, we refute every claim made by Councilwoman McKenzie, with evidence. The judge set our hearing for October 30, 2024.
AND SEE ALL EVIDENCE
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The Committee to Recall Jamelle McKenzie
Recallable Offenses Reasons and Facts
Since January, Ward 1 Councilwoman Jamelle McKenzie has repeatedly engaged in a pattern of lies and manipulative behavior, which is grounds for removal and constitutes a violation of her oath of office. The collective impact of her actions is disturbing. They cast suspicion and doubt over everything she says, eroding the fundamental basis of her role as a public servant.
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Employee Interference Without Authority
- Councilwoman McKenzie's community Facebook page announced the firing of a city employee before the city officially notified the employee of her termination.
- This was beyond the scope of her authority as a council member and a violation of the employee’s rights under the City’s Human Resources Manual.
- Only the Interim City Manager has the authority to manage employees directly.
FACT: This is unconscionable. Not only did she not have the authority to do this, but she also violated this individual's privacy with complete disregard.
Employee Harassment and a Toxic Work Environment
- Councilwoman McKenzie has repeatedly harassed city employees and allowed others to mistreat city employees without intervention, contributing to a toxic work environment and the loss of 17 high-level city employees and contractors.
- Employees who disagree with her improper directions, often because they violate city policies and procedures, are accused of insubordination and retaliation.
- Evidence is displayed in numerous emails, oral communications relayed by current and former employees, and even in her treatment of employees during council meetings.
- She also failed to exercise proper oversight as the Interim City Manager mismanaged employees, resulting in an unprecedented loss of core city functions and leaving the city with insufficient staff to manage daily operations
FACT: The Council has no authority to direct employees. The Council’s only employee is the City Manager. All requests to city employees must go through the City Manager. It is unheard of for this many department heads and key employees to leave or be fired for insubordination when they disagree with the council in a city the size of College Park. The loss of these employees and department heads has left the city without key employees in accounting, finance, purchasing, building inspections, economic development, airport affairs, and the city clerk, just to name a few.
Blocking and Intimidation of Constituents
- Councilwoman McKenzie has intimidated and attempted to silence citizens who disagree with her.
- She has blocked numerous citizens on her social media accounts, which she uses to make official public comments on city business, and even from her official city email address, preventing them from being able to otherwise engage with the councilwoman who swore an oath to represent all constituents.
- Additionally, she has threatened constituents with legal action when they have done nothing other than to express their disagreement with her and harassed those who speak against her.
FACT: Councilwoman McKenzie continually says she can be reached in a number of ways. Yet, more than a handful of residents remain actually blocked to this day, most because they voiced their disagreement with certain decisions or asked for an explanation. She claims to have 24-hour police protection. However, the city has no record of this, and her complaints to the police about constituents have not resulted in any citations or findings of inappropriate behavior. She has even threatened multiple constituents with legal action for unproven claims of harassment,
Lying about the Battery Facility and Bill Evans Field/Badgett Practice Field
- Councilwoman Jamelle McKenzie’s repeated dishonesty and deception during several city council meetings violates the public trust.
- She was deceptive by not revealing the truth about the origin of a NextEra document for a controversial battery storage facility, which metadata shows that the emailed document was originally sent to the Councilwoman.
- During the mayor's questioning of the interim city manager, she failed to acknowledge her role in an unpopular and illegal motion for rezoning.
- Councilwoman McKenzie again misled constituents in June when she claimed she did not know about a proposal from Morehouse College to save Bill Evans field. Official emails revealed that she knew about the Morehouse proposal as far back as February and was an active participant in trying to prevent the proposal from being presented to the City Council for consideration.
FACT: Developers for both projects have donated to the Councilwoman’s campaign. She has repeatedly refused to take any responsibility for these decisions, although, in the case of the Battery Facility, she was even against it as a private citizen. She has omitted the fact that the sale of Bill Evans Field includes the “practice field” of Badgett Stadium, taking away the popular recreation space located just behind the track.
Taking Part In BIDA Executive Session as a Private Citizen
- Councilwoman McKenzie took part in closed executive sessions of The Building and Industrial Development Authority (BIDA) without the necessary authority.
- These closed meetings were not joint sessions with the Council, and other private citizens were excluded.
- She had no right to be present as a private citizen, and no authority to participate as a member of the Council.
FACT: CW McKenzie continually states in public meetings and private conversations that BIDA sells property, including Bill Evans Field, and that she has no role in what they do with public property or power over their decisions. This is another lie, as each Council Member appoints a BIDA representative. By statute and through by-laws, BIDA’s role is limited to implementing policies set by the Council. They can not dispose of city property without the express approval of the Council.
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Status
We successfully collected more than double the required signatures for the recall application and had those verified. Councilwoman McKenzie has challenged our efforts in court and we are paused until the judge decides next steps. Our hearing is set for October 30.
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The Committee to Recall Jamelle McKenzie
Join us to demand accountability for the citizens of College Park Ward 1. Together we can build the community we deserve
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