On October 10, 2024, a Cuyahoga County grand jury indicted East Cleveland Mayor Brandon King with twelve criminal charges including theft in office, having an unlawful interest in a public contract, and soliciting or receiving improper compensation. The mayor has pleaded ‘not guilty’ to all charges. King continued in his role as mayor until January 28, 2025, when a panel of three retired judges appointed by the Ohio Supreme Court voted 2-1 to suspend King from his mayoral duties until the case is resolved. It is likely that King will appeal the suspension, although the suspension will continue through the court’s review of any appeal.
In accordance with Section 3.16 of the Ohio Revised Code, Cuyahoga County Probate Court Presiding Judge Anthony Russo will receive applications for the role of interim mayor through February 14, 2025. The court will then choose an interim mayor from the candidates. The ORC states that when public officials are charged with a felony related to their official duties, the public official may be suspended from their duties until the case is resolved. During this suspension, King will retain the title of mayor and continue to receive a salary.
The suspension creates the question of who will assume the duties of the mayor until an interim mayor is chosen by the court. Section 114 of the East Cleveland city charter provides the order of succession when the mayor is unable to perform their duties. If there is a short-term disability, then the role of acting mayor will be given to the Director of Finance, Director of Law, and then the Director of Public Service. For long-term or permanent vacancy, the succession follows to “President of Council, Vice President of Council and ranking Council member based upon aggregate years of service....”
Roughly two weeks stand between Mayor King’s suspension and the appointing of interim mayor. If this is to be considered a short-term vacancy, then the duties would fall to the Director of Finance, Latasha Williams, but she is only an Interim Finance Director. Because of this, East Cleveland Law Director Willa Hemmons has claimed to be the successor. The City Council disagrees, with Council President Leti Shabbazz stating that he is the acting mayor, citing the same statute, and that Hemmons cannot be acting mayor due to being a contract employee. Fox 8 News reported Shabbazz stating in an animated press conference: “She [Hemmons] doesn’t have the authority... and her legal opinion ain’t worth two cents. She is the one who got the mayor indicted on her legal opinion.” One might wonder, who does have the authority to oversee the assumption of the mayor’s duties?
The conflicting claims from the Hemmons and Shabbazz also begs the question: Why is there confusion to the extent that two city officials are simultaneously claiming to hold the responsibilities of mayor? Given that King’s felony indictment was filed over two months prior and the nature of the charges, it would be foreseeable that a suspension was likely. Deciding the interim mayor during this period is a matter of interpreting the city charter, but evidently the charter does not provide a clear enough roadmap to avoid conflict and confusion. Several questions remain to be answered: what distinguishes short-term and long-term vacancies and what checks and balances are there to ensure a smooth transfer of duties? Residents and onlookers would hope that this situation leads to efforts aimed at clarifying the procedures of the city and preventing similar conflicts from occurring in the future.
This suspension and succession controversy continues narratives of dysfunction in East Cleveland governance. Brandon King was elected as East Cleveland mayor in 2016 following the recall of former mayor Gary Norton Jr. In late 2023, King survived the second recall election of his term and news of contention between the mayor’s office and city council has been persistent throughout his administration. Perhaps new leadership can be a move towards stability, though whoever assumes the duties of mayor will have a full plate with the city having yet to pass a budget for 2025.
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