City files injunction against mayor

GRANTS, N.M. - The City of Grants, through its governing body, has filed an injunction against Mayor Martin “Modey” Hicks. The City is seeking a complaint for declaratory judgment, preliminary injunctions, and permanent injunction.

The City, through its legal counsel of Wade L. Jackson, Susan M. Hapka and Jesse D. Hale, seeks declaratory and injunctive relief against Hicks due to repeated refusal to abide by the requirements of the city charter. The document identifies several complaints against the mayor.

Three counts were filed with the 13th Judicial District Court in Cibola County.

Count 1: Declaratory Judgment

An actual controversy exists between the city and the mayor regarding the mayor’s authority to unilaterally suspend, remove, or place the city manager on administrative leave.

The city requests that the court declare that the mayor does not have authority to suspend or remove the city manager or place the city manager on administrative leave without the vote by a majority of all members of the governing body.

The city requests that the court declare that the city manager may only be suspended or removed through a majority vote of the governing body.

Count 2: Preliminary injunction

The requested injunction seeks only to enjoin* the mayor from violating the charter, which the city states the mayor is already obligated to comply with. Thus, the mayor will not suffer any damages if the court enjoins the mayor for violating the charter.

The issuance of the requested injunction will not be adverse to the public’s interest as the injunction would merely enjoin the mayor from violating the law as provided by the charter. (to direct or impose by authoritative order or with urgent admonition 2a: FORBID, PROHIBIT b: to prohibit by a judicial order : put an injunction on. Merriam-Webster definition)

Count 3: Permanent injunction

The city is also substantially likely to succeed on the merits of its request for a permanent injunction because the language of the charter is clear: the city manager may only be suspended or removed by a vote of a majority of the members of the governing body. The charter does not authorize the mayor to take any such action.

The city claims the mayor’s actions are causing irreparable injury, including, but not limited, the inability to conduct the city’s affairs. The city has no adequate remedy at law. Equity requires that the mayor be enjoined from suspending or removing the city manager without a vote of a majority of all members of the governing body or placing the city manager on administrative leave.

The city asks the court to declare the mayor does not have authority to unilaterally place the city manager on administrative leave or suspend or remove without the affirmative vote of a majority of all members of the governing body.

“Here is what I find funny. They broke the law to get this done,” Hicks said. “At some point they all had to get together to discuss this which a rolling quorum or they had a secret meeting but somewhere they got together the four of them, to do this to basically change the charter to what they want.”

At the end of the Nov. 9 meeting Hicks let the public know about the lawsuit and Councilor Eric Garcia pointed at the mayor saying, “You started this!”

Hicks responded by telling Garcia, “You guys broke the law. That’s the bottom line. You didn’t have the intestinal fortitude to call me. None of you guys did. Like little snakes you went behind me and got a little quorum together. You guys broke the law. You bet I said I was going to sue you.”

Hicks said that if the city is going to pay for this injunction, then the city will also pay to defend him. “What I am going to do is bring my lawyer bills to Laura [Jaramillo] so she can pay it. Because if you guys can pay lawyers to sue me then you can pay to defend me because this is an ordinance.”

In a phone interview with the Cibola Citizen, the paper asked Councilor Garcia what was going on with the lawsuit, Garcia responded, “I have no idea.”

Later, in the interview, Garcia said, “It’s an injunction because of what the mayor is trying to do with the city manager.”

“The community is behind the council and the community is not happy with the mayor,” Garcia said.

Councilor Rick Lucero said in a phone interview with the Citizen the city is junction because of the mayor’s behavior in the meetings with the attempt to remove the city manager.

“He [the mayor] has to conduct these meetings in a professional way, and he is not doing that,” Lucero said.

“A coward dies a thousand deaths, a brave man only dies once,” Hicks said as the meeting adjourned.

“A coward dies a thousand deaths, a brave man only dies once.”

— Martin “Modey” Hicks, Grants Mayor