Derek Cornette, the former 7th Ward alderman of Davenport, is suing the city, the mayor, and the City Council, according to a lawsuit filed Friday.
In the suit, Cornette claims he was illegally removed from office.
Cornette and his attorney appeared in front of Davenport City Hall on Friday afternoon to talk about why they’ve filed the lawsuit.
Cornette was removed by a City Council vote last week. This came after allegations of inappropriate behavior in the workplace and accusations that Cornette attended City Hall meetings under the influence of alcohol.
Cornette and his attorney say his removal was not about anything other than political differences between Cornette and Mayor Mike Matson.
“This ended up being conducted against Alderman Cornette as a witch hunt by the mayor and the City Council because of their political bias against him regarding his opinions stated publicly on matters of public concern,” said Cornette’s attorney, Michael Meloy.
“I say they’re making a mountain out of a molehill,” Cornette said.
Local 4 News has reached out to the City of Davenport for comment. Generally, the city will not comment on pending litigation.
The lawsuit
In the suit, Cornette alleges the city published a notice of the removal hearing before they provided Cornette with any written charges for the hearing.
Cornette says his due-process rights were violated by the defendants, and that “Defendants recklessly and willfully acted in complete disregard of Cornette’s due process constitutional rights,” according to the lawsuit.
Cornette asks for a temporary injunction in his favor prohibiting Davenport from enforcing its Sept. 7 removal action against him, the lawsuit shows. The suit asks to “sanction defendant Matson for his illegal acts” and enter relief to Cornette “that is just and equitable, including court costs.”
