Submitted By: William E. Sexton, City Attorney
Presentation By: William E. Sexton, City Attorney
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Department: City Attorney
STAFF RECOMMENDATION (Motion Ready):
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Approval of and entry into a proposed Settlement Agreement in the matter of Art Rojas & Lucinda Hale v. City of Ocala, currently pending on appeal before the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
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OCALA’S RELEVANT STRATEGIC GOALS:
Fiscally Sustainable, .
PROOF OF PUBLICATION:
N/A
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BACKGROUND:
In or about 2014, Art Rojas and Lucinda Hale filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida alleging that the City violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment by conducting and/or participating in a community prayer event following a series of violent crimes earlier that summer.
For the ensuing ten years, that litigation has continued - before the District Court, on appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the United States Supreme Court, back before the District Court and now, again, before the Eleventh Circuit.
Since late 2024, legal counsel for the City has been in settlement negotiations with counsel for the Plaintiffs, the culmination of which is the proposed settlement agreement which is now being presented to City Council for its approval.
This proposed settlement both sees this matter resolved with a finality that allows the parties to move forward - out from under the cloud of the ongoing litigation - and ensures that the City will not be responsible for the payment of the Plaintiffs’ attorneys fees and costs - eliminating a liability that has been estimated to exceed $1 million.
The proposed settlement before Council for its approval is the product of many hours of negotiation and preparation by counsel for both the Plaintiffs and the City and is in accordance with the direction previously provided by Council during private, attorney-client meetings.
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS:
The City Council of the City of Ocala, Florida finds, determines and concludes that approval of and entry into the proposed settlement in the matter of Rojas v. City of Ocala, currently pending on appeal before the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit:
• Is intended to and does protect and promote the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of the City of Ocala, Florida; and
• Is in the best interest of the City of Ocala, Florida and its citizens.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with the approval of this proposed settlement.
PROCUREMENT REVIEW:
N/A
LEGAL REVIEW:
This proposed settlement has been drafted and/or reviewed by Abigail Southerland and Geoffrey Surtees of the American Center for Law and Justice, counsel for the City of Ocala in this matter and has been reviewed and approved as to form and legality by William E. Sexton, City Attorney.
ALTERNATIVE(S):
Approve entry into proposed settlement with changes;
Table for consideration at a later date; or
Not approve entry into proposed settlement.