(From WBOC.com)
ACLU Files Second Complaint Against Pocomoke City
Posted: Aug 20, 2015 8:40 PM EDTPOCOMOKE CITY, Md. – The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland has filed a second complaint in a month against Pocomoke City officials for violations of the Maryland Open Meetings Act (MOMA).
The latest complaint concerns unannounced, closed meetings held by Town Officials in late June, during which the decision was made to fire Pocomoke’s former Police Chief, Kelvin Sewell. The complaint was filed with the Maryland Open Meetings Compliance Board on behalf of Stephen Janis, a reporter for The Real News Network, a Baltimore-based non-profit news organization.
As with the ACLU’s first complaint, which pertained to the media being barred from a Pocomoke Council meeting on July 13, this complaint again relates to Pocomoke City’s controversial firing of Sewell. At the time of the firing, no explanation was given for the town’s action, and many in the community were angry and upset. Pocomoke officials have so far remained silent about the process and basis upon which they arrived at their decision to terminate Chief Sewell.