Special prosecutor: No dereliction of duty charges for Cincinnati City Council 'Gang of 5'

The special prosecutor who investigated a group of Cincinnati City Council members for secretly conducting city business via text messages has recommended the members not be criminally charged with dereliction of duty.

But in a letter dated Sept. 28, Special Prosecutor Patrick Hanley did not completely close the door on the case.

He wrote: "After considering this particular matter at length, I have concluded that such a criminal charge against the five council members, P.G. Sittenfeld, Chris Seelbach, Greg Landsman, Tamaya Dennard and Wendell Young, is not warranted and therefore decline prosecution."

But, he added, in the last line: "The investigation is ongoing."  

Ohio Auditor Keith Faber's office initiated the investigation. He would not answer direct questions about the case.

Instead, a spokeswoman for his office, Allie Dumski, wrote in an emailed statement Tuesday that his office's investigations unit had concluded that a crime may have been committed and brought it to a prosecutor for consideration.

"In this occasion, the prosecutor declined to initiate criminal charges at this time. The Auditor’s Office will continue to identify violations of the Sunshine Law and, when necessary, pursue legal remedies to ensure Ohioans that the people’s work is being done in the light of day,” the statement read. 

Dennard was a council member at the time, but resigned from council March 2 after she was arrested on federal charges that allege she traded votes on a development deal for $15,000, a deal that was recorded as part of an FBI sting.

She has since pleaded guilty to a charge of honest services wire fraud, meaning she schemed to defraud citizens and the city council of their right to honest services. Sentencing is scheduled for later this year.

Attorney Tom Hodges, who represented Seelbach, wrote on behalf of Seelbach, Sittenfeld and Landsman: "This episode should now be put behind us. They have apologized for and learned from their mistake. Cincinnati is facing four crises all at once -- a pandemic, a recession, a movement for greater racial justice and the spike in crime. That's what our community is concerned about and that's what our leaders are focused on. I have spoken to Mr. Hanley and this is over."

Young and Dennard did not return requests for comment.

Of the five, Young also faced scrutiny for deleting texts Judge Robert Ruehlman ordered preserved as part of the civil case. Ruehlman, a Hamilton County Common Pleas judge, declined to impose contempt of court charges.

The charges stem from a civil lawsuit in which the five council members, who make up a majority of city council, admitted they illegally texted with each other about city business over a three-month period at the beginning of 2018.

That was a violation of Ohio’s Open Meeting Act. The city agreed to pay $101,000 to settle the case -- $90,000 in attorney fees, $10,000 for Young’s destruction of text messages during the case and a $1,000 fine for the violation.

Once the civil case concluded, last December, Faber looked at the case and recommended the five council members be investigated to see if the secret texts rose to the level of dereliction of duty, a second-degree misdemeanor. Faber is a Republican; the 'Gang of Five' are all Democrats. 

Deters did not return a call seeking comment.

More:City Hall confidential: We have Cincinnati council's secret texts and here's what they say

More:City Hall confidential: We have Cincinnati council's secret texts and here's what they say

To avoid any conflicts of interest, Muething and Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters determined Hanley would do the review.

He began work in December, noting he was slowed by the coronavirus pandemic which stopped all but essential work for more than a month.

Vice Mayor Christopher Smitherman has been critical of the five members of council ever since the texts came to light. He said this decision sets a bad precedent.

"It will be open season for 'secret meetings' across the state of Ohio," he said. "The 'Gang of 5' are walking away with $176,000 of taxpayer money with zero accountability. This is what justice looks like for the powerful. I hope the public will not reward them with a vote."  

Attorney Brian Shrive, who represented Mark Miller, a Cincinnati citizen, in the civil case said, "Regardless of the decision not to prosecute at this time, ultimately, the voters will decide if PG Sittenfeld and Greg Landsman are fit to serve in public office."