A public censure of an unnamed member of the Bristol City Council will be considered Tuesday night by the council.
The meeting agenda does not name the member who may be censured. When asked if the member is Michael Pollard, City Manager Randy Eads said Friday night that he could not say.
On Jan. 6, Pollard issued a public apology for “publicly criticizing and lying” about city employees, including the longtime city manager. Pollard also admitted in the Facebook post that he had breached the council’s code of ethics, “despite multiple warnings in closed meetings with the full Council,” and shared information that had been shared privately with him.
Pollard said he could not comment about whether he is the member who may be censured when reached by phone Friday night.
“I promised that I would not comment on that issue, so I better stick to my promise and simply say no comment,” he said.
A public censure is “what a public body does to another member when the member breaks the rules of that public body. Basically, it’s a written warning to the member of the public body not to do that type of conduct again,” Eads said.
Censure doesn’t involve removal, according to Eads, who said no other council member has been censured while he has worked for the city. He started working as city attorney in 2017 and was also named city manager the following year.
Pollard, who was elected in November 2022, did not detail in his apology what he lied about or what led him to apologize. He did say that he sent a private Facebook message to a citizen that “contained numerous falsehoods about Mr. Eads that I knew to be false at the time I wrote the message.” That was a violation of the code, he said.
The apology came shortly after city council met in a called session that was closed to the public. It also came four days after Pollard voted against Eads’ reappointment as city manager and city attorney during council’s annual reorganizational meeting. Pollard said then he doesn’t think both roles should be filled by one person.
On that Saturday, Jan. 4, Eads sent Pollard a Virginia Freedom of Information request that sought any email, text message, social media post, notes or documents, and audio or video recordings that mention Eads or his job performance since January 2023, when Pollard took office.
In his apology, Pollard said that Eads will not require him to respond to the FOIA request “based on my apology and admissions today.”
Council members did not mention the apology during their next meeting on January 13. But one citizen urged Pollard to resign. If he does not resign, the man said council should remove him. There was no response from the council.
Council met again in a called, closed session Thursday night. There was one item on the agenda, which stated it was to discuss the performance of a council member. Eads said Friday that council took no action when it emerged from the closed session.
The council’s code of ethics states that those who hold public office have been given a public trust that demands the highest levels of ethical and moral conduct. It was signed in May 2023 by the five current council members.
The city code includes a process to follow if a council member is accused of violating the standards. The accused is informed of the complaint and given a reasonable time to respond, and then the remaining council members and the city manager/city attorney can meet to discuss the allegation and poll members about the disposition of the matter. The code does not detail what happens beyond that.
Council also has the power to remove a member, but only for malfeasance or neglect of duty. The member must be notified of the grounds for removal and given a public hearing. The council’s decision is final, the code states.
The council meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, 300 Lee St. You can view the agenda here.
