Lawsuit served on Grady commissioners, administrator

Published 1:47 pm Thursday, December 21, 2017

CAIRO — Three Grady County commissioners and the county’s administrator were named in a lawsuit, filed in Grady County Superior Court, after a former commissioner was barred from attending meetings for six months. 

Charles Renaud filed a lawsuit against commissioners Ray Prince, LaFaye Copeland, and T.D. David, along with county administrator Carlos Tobar, following a 3-2 vote to temporarily bar him from attending meetings. 

Renaud’s ban stemmed from an outburst during a meeting on Dec. 5. During discussion of the county possibly seeking new legal counsel, Renaud interrupted the meeting and was escorted out. 

“I hate what happened when I got up and said what I did, but I don’t regret it,” Renaud told the Times-Enterprise Wednesday. 

Renaud also said he “couldn’t idly sit by and let somebody burn my county down without me saying something.”  

“It had to do with procedure,” Renaud added of the outburst. 

According to the complaint filed by Todd Butler, Renaud’s attorney, Renaud “does not contest that the board had authority to eject him from the meeting … regardless of whether his conduct rose to a breach of the peace, if the board found that (Renaud’s) conduct at the meeting was actually disruptive.” 

A notice of trespass was served on Renaud by a Grady County Sheriff’s Office deputy prior to the Dec. 12 joint meeting of the Grady County Board of Commissioners and the Tired Creek Lake Authority, according to the complaint. Tobar, the complaint states, signed and delivered the notice to the deputy. 

Following the joint meeting, the commissioners continued in session where the vote to bar Renaud was conducted. 

Renaud, a realtor and chair of the Southwest Georgia Board of Realtors, said Wednesday he represents “one of the biggest groups affected by Tired Creek Lake.” 

Between the Dec. 5 and 12 meetings, the complaint claims Prince, David, and Copeland, “met, on one or more occasions, either telephonically or in person, or they otherwise engaged in communications that should have taken place only in a meeting of the Board of Commissioners, to formulate, present, discuss or vote on the question of proscriptively ejecting (Renaud) from or enjoining (Renaud) from attending future meetings of the Board of Commissioners.” 

The complaint also claims a violation of the open meetings act occurred. 

The complaint states “the defendant (commissioners) concealed their meeting or meetings from the public and conducted said meeting or meetings in closed session without following the required (open meetings act) procedures for closing and conducting closed meetings.” 

“Our local governments around here use closed sessions far too much,” Butler said Wednesday. 

At the Tuesday Grady commission meeting, Commissioner Keith Moye requested to publicly show a video of Renaud after Renaud was escorted from the Dec. 5 meeting. 

“I would like to see it eventually,” he said. “I’m sure most of the people in this room would.” 

County Clerk Carrie Croy said the video was sent to Association of County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) for legal advice.  

Kevin Cauley, county attorney, said he has not offered an opinion regarding the video. 

“I have not given one, I’ll be clear about that,” he said. 

On Wednesday, Prince said there is a 30-day response time and a claim will be sent to ACCG, which will represent the county in the legal matter. 

“I hate it’s come to this,” he said. 

Reporter Jordan Barela can be reached at (229) 226-2400, ext. 1826.