The Truth WILL Come Out

The Martin Chronicles wonders just how bad-and costly-Villa Hills malfeasant Mayor Mike Martin's latest fiasco will get before it ends. Experts are predicting Martin's ham-handed attempt to terminate Assistant Police Chief Joe Schutzman will end up costing the taxpayers somewhere between $75,000-$150,000. Keep in mind that these expenses are not covered by the City's insurance carrier. So, the taxpayers will be taking the full brunt of Martin's antics square in their wallets.

We are reminded that the City Council recently decided by a 4-2 vote to "unrestrict" funds in the City budget. Why? So that Martin's hands weren't tied by those budget restrictions as the fiscal year wound down. So what has happened? It appears that Martin has decided to spend much of those unrestricted funds on attorneys and legal actions.

Oh, and these projected costs do not include any lawsuits that will likely arise from Martin's most recent debacle. Sure, the City's insurance carrier will  cover much of the expense of those looming lawsuits. But what will happen to the City's insurance premiums as a result?

One local wag recently quipped that, "Martin has to be a leading contender for the Bar Association's Man of the Year Award. He's been a real boon for local attorneys.  Heck, he's using our money to pay at least six attorneys right now. Three attorneys for his Civil Service mess, one attorney to sue the residents over the license fee, one attorney to attend the Code Enforcement meetings and City Attorney Toad V. McMurtry".

The absurdity worsened when Martin informed the Civil Service Board that he was using more taxpayer money to sue them. Oh, it gets even worse. Even more taxpayer money will be used to defend the Civil Service Board from Martin's lawsuit. Look for it to get even crazier.

Many are wondering why Martin doesn't want the Civil Service Board to hear his charges against Schutzman. People want to know why Martin insists on wasting so much taxpayer money to stop the process. The rumor mill offers some possible explanations.

• Is there an odd voice message from a City official challenging someone's statutorily-guaranteed right to attend any open meeting?
• Is there some documentation that a City official has threatened to file suit against one or more elected officials?
• Have witnesses come forward saying that hearsay statements provided by a City official are false?
• Is there a recording of Martin's profane outburst against the Civil Service Board about to surface?

If these and other rumors are true it could explain a few things. Martin and others would certainly want to avoid the embarrassment-or worse-that would arise from such revelations.

Something tells us all of this will all see the light of day either way.

Spending Lots Of Other People's Money

The Martin Chronicles has talked to a number of sources in the aftermath of Villa Hills malfeasant Mayor Mike Martin's odd reversal last week. On May 23, Martin suspended Assistant Chief Joe Schutzman without pay, charging him with intimidation and political activity. Martin added three additional taxpayer-funded attorneys to the payroll. Then the City's Civil Service Board scheduled a three-day hearing to listen to the evidence for and defense of the charges.

Martin's attorneys presented their bill of particulars explaining the charges after the deadline prescribed by the Civil Service Board. The "particulars" included hearsay provided by City Attorney Toad V. McMurtry and claims of "selective traffic enforcement" from City Clerk Craig Bohman. Interestingly, Bohman acknowledged in his statements that he wasn't always sure if it was even Assistant Chief Schutzman "selectively" enforcing traffic.

Then the process took a turn. Martin's attorneys asked the Civil Service Board to dismiss the charges against Schutzman. The Board decided to proceed with their scheduled hearing. On Thursday we learned that some agreement had been reached between the two parties to hold the hearing in abeyance pending the outcome of a lawsuit Martin will be filing against the Civil Service Board.

The purpose of Martin's lawsuit? To wrest away the power the Civil Service Board had been given in December 2010 to hear the kind of charges Martin made against Schutzman. Schutzman's attorney Jeff Otis believes that Martin wants to have what he perceives to be a more compliant City Council hear the case. Given that three of the City Council are more or less on the record saying they want to "outsource" the management of the police department, Martin is probably correct about that.

So Martin is going to be spending a great deal more taxpayer money to sue the taxpayers. Yes, that's right. Martin is USING YOUR MONEY TO SUE YOU. Tens of thousands of dollars has been spent since Martin began this process on May 23. Tens of thousands more will be spent as the process moves forward. So much for Martin's claim that he "runs a tight ship".

What happens next is anybody's guess. While this crazy mess continues to unfold several residents report  seeing Kenton County police cruisers patrolling the City's streets.

WEEKENDER: Who's "BS" Is It Anyway?

The Martin Chronicles feels sorry for the taxpayers of Villa Hills. Malfeasant Mayor Mike Martin's disgraceful vendetta against Police Chief Dan Goodenough, Assistant Chief Joe Schutzman and the rest of the City's Police Department will end up taking a terrible toll.

The dreadful toll is not just financial. Although the taxpayers need to realize that Martin has already squandered tens of thousands of dollars in this latest fiasco to persecute Joe Schutzman. You see, the City's reputation is also being severely damaged. Just look at what is being reported from virtually every local media outlet. Villa Hills has become the butt of jokes all across the Tri-State region. Its only going to get worse.

Why? Because Martin is going to be suing the taxpayers yet again. Yes, that's right. Several sources have confirmed that Martin exploded in rage at last night's Civil Service Board meeting when his next lawsuit against the taxpayers was mentioned. He reportedly screamed, "Put this in perspective! Let's cut through this bulls*%t!"

Well, here's the perspective. Martin is refusing to accept that the Civil Service Board is the correct body to hear his charges against Joe Schutzman. The Civil Service Board was created and given that power by the City Council in December 2010.

Martin is going to be spending tens of thousands more of the taxpayers dollars going to court in an attempt to take that power away from the Civil Service Board. Why? Schutzman's attorney says Martin is hoping to have what he thinks will be a more compliant City Council hear the charges.

Taxpayers should also know that Martin and the City Attorney received an email from the Kentucky League of Cities Legal Department on May 12, 2012 advising them that State Statute does provide the Civil Service Board the power to hear the charges against Schutzman. Sure, Martin has the right to test the KLC's opinion in a court room. But why? It is going to cost the taxpayers a great deal of money.

Let's do what Martin wants and "cut through this bulls*%t". Martin simply cannot handle being told by anyone that he can't just do whatever he wants. Remember what he has been saying since the beginning of his term? "I'm the CEO. It's my decision. Get over it. We're moving on!"

Additionally, most people are beginning to realize that Martin's vendetta is fueled by his burning desire to get revenge for his 2007 FORGERY ARREST. He now has the advantage of SPENDING YOUR MONEY to gain that revenge.

The taxpayers will not get the opportunity to truly "move on" until they toss Martin out of the mayor's office on November 4, 2014. The concern? Just how much more damage will be done and taxpayer money wasted over the next 515 days.

The Cost Of Revenge Continues To Rise

The Martin Chronicles has concluded that there will be no end to the twists and turns in the ongoing saga of Villa Hills malfeasant Mayor Mike Martin's long-running vendetta against Assistant Chief Joe Schutzman, Chief Dan Goodenough and the rest of the City's police department. Here's the problem. Martin has been spending your money on his non-stop witch hunt. Every twist and turn is now coming with a huge price tag for taxpayers.

The latest? Tonight's on-again, off-again, on-again hearing to be held regarding the Schutzman matter by the Civil Service Board is off yet again. They will meet. But not for the hearing. They will be discussing next steps as Martin trots off to court to try and take away the Civil Service Board's jurisdiction over the Schutzman matter.

Do you see a pattern developing here? Remember that there are several attorneys assisting Martin with this vendetta. Their meters are running full speed ahead. If the Civil Service Board decides to fight to protect the right City Council voted to give them in 2010-and we think they should-that will also come at no small cost.

Sources close to the mess believe Martin's latest moves to shut down the hearing were prompted by concern over the great embarrassment-and perhaps worse-that would come to light as witnesses testified. These sources suspect that Martin and his team realized they were in trouble when they saw the the list of witnesses who were going to be called and the questions they were going to be asked. It seems they concluded that the hearing must be stopped-whatever the cost to the taxpayers.

Martin continues to cost the taxpayers an incredible amount of money-and the prestige of a once well-respected City. His spendthrift behavior began when he filed a $1.505 million dollar lawsuit against the taxpayers over his 2007 forgery arrest. It has continued virtually unabated ever since.

Other sources provide us with some insight in to why Martin is so anxious to have the City Council hear his charges against Schutzman. We are told that Council members Koenig and Menninger-Isenhour were confronted by a deeply concerned resident in a local store. The two council members "assured" the resident that they "only" wanted to get rid of Chief Goodenough and Assistant Chief Schutzman. So, the harassment and intimidation extends well beyond just Martin. There are clearly others involved as well.

Oh, and then we hear that Kenton County Judge Executive-and Villa Hills resident-Steve Arlinghaus continues to tell anyone who will listen that his County police will be taking over this October. So much for Martin's claim he is doing a study and carefully evaluating the City's options.

We haven't even come close to seeing a final price tag for this fiasco.

Civil Service Board Hearing To Move Ahead

The Martin Chronicles watched last night's Civil Service Board hearing with great interest. Villa Hills malfeasant Mayor Mike Martin's new TAXPAYER-FUNDED attorneys asked the Civil Service board to dismiss the charges against Assistant Chief Joe Schutzman that Martin had presented to them just a few days before.

After listening to the arguments made by TAXPAYER-FUNDED attorney Timothy Spille and Schutzman's attorney Jeff Otis, the board went in to Executive Session. The board returned about twenty minutes later and unanimously decided to deny Martin's request to dismiss the charges and move forward with the hearing, beginning Thursday evening at 6:30.

One might wonder why Schutzman's own attorney would argue against dismissing the charges. The dismissal of those charges would have led to Schutzman's immediate reinstatement. If one watched Martin's comments to Local 12 reporter Joe Webb last night it would be very clear why Schutzman wants and needs his "day in court". Martin made it as clear as he's capable that he would continue to pursue charges against the Assistant Chief, taking his case to a potentially more compliant City Council instead.

So now the hearing will proceed. How much will this cost? Keep in mind that the taxpayers paid one attorney $7,000 in a failed attempt to terminate another employee last year. That bill represented the cost of a one-night hearing and all of the preparatory work.

Taxpayers are now paying three additional attorneys instead of one. There has already been two nights of hearings instead of the one last year. Three more nights of hearings are scheduled for this Thursday, Friday and next Tuesday. Martin's actions against Assistant Chief Schutzman may prove to be very costly for the taxpayers. The costs we listed don't represent the potential financial fallout from any future lawsuits filed resulting from what appears to be shaping up as a colossal foul-up.

We have also obtained a copy of the bill of particulars Martin's attorneys presented post-deadline to the Civil Service Board and Schutzman's attorney.

More on that to come.

There Is No Bottom To It

The Martin Chronicles has been reporting on Villa Hills malfeasant Mayor Mike Martin’s mayhem since October 8, 2011. Nearly 130,000 visits later, we have always been able to explain even the most bizarre things Martin has done. We’ve covered his endless false allegations and assertions. We have covered his persistent inability to fill State Statute-mandated Open Records requests. We thoroughly explained his bizarre, ongoing and incredibly illegal destruction of City records. We have explained why his unlicensed business practices do affect City business. But-we must confess-we are having a very difficult time explaining this most recent turn of events.

 As we have previously reported, Martin recently suspended Assistant Chief Joe Schutzman without pay as a prelude to a hearing by the Civil Service board where Martin publicly stated he intended to ask for Schutzman’s termination.  Why? Because Martin claimed Schutzman was guilty of “intimidation” and “political activity”.

 The Civil Service board held a meeting last Friday night to chart their course. Schutzman’s attorney Jeff Otis asked the board to dismiss Martin’s charges on the basis that Martin offered no evidence of his charges against his client. The board decided to proceed with a hearing beginning this Thursday evening. Why? We believe the board wanted to hear the evidence of Martin’s charges. The board gave Martin until 4PM Monday to present that evidence. So what happened?

We have learned that the Civil Service board is holding a meeting tonight. Why? Because Martin’s two TAXPAYER-FUNDED attorneys are going to ask the board to dismiss Martin’s charges against Schutzman without prejudice. Oh, really. Is that a fact? You don’t say? So what the heck happened?

Well, not surprisingly, Martin produced no evidence and revealed no witnesses against Schutzman to prove “intimidation” or “political activity” by the 4PM deadline. No, they produced nothing. Zip. Nada. Zilch. Keep in mind that Martin’s two TAXPAYER-FUNDED attorneys did not object to the Monday 4PM deadline imposed by the board at last Friday’s meeting.

So again, what the heck happened? It seems clear that there was no evidence. It appears that all we got was confirmation that Martin was simply continuing to push his agenda of revenge for his 2007 FORGERY ARREST. It appears that Martin was tripped up by his own lust for vengeance.

We hope you understand that this Martin foul-up is going to be a costly one. Martin added THREE TAXPAYER-FUNDED ATTORNEYS TO THE CITY PAYROLL FOR THIS VENDETTA. Rest assured all three attorneys will be billing for everything they did. Even though it was A WITCH HUNT.

Here’s the catch. We are fine with the board dismissing the charges. But-and it is a huge “but”-it should be done with prejudice. Why? Because otherwise Martin is free to continue to pursue his persistent pattern of intimidation and harassment of Schutzman and the rest of the Villa Hill Police Department. And it would be outrageous for the board to allow that to continue.

Hopefully, the taxpayers will finally wake up to what is happening. Martin must go on November 4, 2014. Or Martin will absolutely destroy the City that was voted the best City in Northern Kentucky just a few months before he deceived a razor-thin majority of voters to elect him in 2010.

It appears now that when the question is asked, How bad can this get?"- there is no bottom to it.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: We are trying to confirm a rumor that one of the attorneys Martin hired for this fiasco-Chris Wiest-is police-hating Councilmember Brian Wischer's BROTHER-IN-LAW. If true, BOY HOWDY!]

[PUBLISHER'S NOTE: Man, oh man do we love reading Facebook. You can always tell a loony Martin Kool-aid drinker when they comment that a respected news outlet like wcpo.com is "biased". Pathetic. By the way, The Martin Chronicles freely admits that we are biased. We are biased against corrupt and incompetent politicians like Martin.]

The Rising Cost Of Martin's Vendetta

The Martin Chronicles finds Villa Hills malfeasant Mayor Mike Martin's boast that he "runs a tight ship" using the savings of a measly one thousand dollars (then immediately wasted on new chairs in the council chambers) by eliminating the City's postage meter as proof more hilarious than ever. Why? Because far more than that will have ended up being wasted at last Friday's meeting of the Civil Service Board. And that was just a meeting about how to run the upcoming meetings.

So why is Martin spending so much of YOUR MONEY still seeking revenge for his 2007 FORGERY ARREST? That's easy. Because he can. The voters gave him that power back in 2010. And he has been exercising that power with extreme prejudice ever since.

Okay, how about some details? How is Martin wasting YOUR MONEY now? Well, there are now THREE MORE ATTORNEYS on his TAXPAYER-FUNDED PAYROLL. Keep in mind that Martin SQUANDERED $7,000 OF YOUR MONEY last year trying to get a poor clerk terminated. Martin is now using YOUR MONEY to pay one attorney to represent the Civil Service Board and two attorneys to represent the City in his spiteful effort to harm Joe Schutzman.

The Civil Service Board scheduled Joe Schutzman's hearing to begin this Thursday and continue Friday and next Tuesday. One attorney COST YOU $7,000 for a failed one-night hearing to terminate a poor clerk. How much of YOUR MONEY will be squandered paying three attorneys for a three-night process?

Additionally, how much money will new lawsuits cost you? Martin suspended Joe Schutzman without pay the day after the May council meeting. It now appears all these days later that Martin and his TAXPAYER-FUNDED GOON SQUAD are scrambling to cobble together "evidence" after the fact. Martin's latest thug move serves as further evidence of his systematic intimidation of employees, elected officials, family members of employees and elected officials and the residents-at-large.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: We are pursuing more stories about Martin's systematic intimidation of employees, elected officials, family members of employees and elected officials and residents-at-large. We are also looking at the City Attorney's direct involvement in this latest fiasco and some of the potential conflicts that are surfacing as we head towards the beginning of the hearing process this Thursday evening.]
[PUBLISHER'S NOTE: Just a note for the "Facebookers" out there. If its' TRUE (as you all admit it is)-it ain't slander. Besides, if its in writing and its defamatory-like Martin's DEFAMATORY 2010 campaign literature-then it would be libel, not slander. Hey, everybody knows who we are. We're The Martin Chronicles! Lastly, please keep writing bad things about us-your driving our readership through the roof!!!!!]