Battie doubles down on false claims, Sarasota City Commission agrees to pay legal expenses

The Sarasota City Commission voted Monday to cover the legal expenses of embattled commissioner Kyle Battie up to $15,000, with more installments possible as he faces an impending lawsuit.

Battie, who is Black, publicly accused local activist Kelly Franklin of referring to him and local business owner Tanya Borysiewicz as "gorillas" in a Facebook post. The evidence Battie presented before the commission was later found to be a hoax.

Franklin's attorney, Richard Harrison of Tampa, told the Herald-Tribune Monday he expects to file a formal lawsuit against Battie next week. During public comment, the attorney called on Battie to resign.

Battie remained indignant in the face of blistering outcry against his conduct. He said that he is a victim of discriminatory attacks, and he reprimanded his critics and their enthusiasm to “malign an African-American man.”

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“I did think [the allegation] was true, and I still think that it is true until proven that it’s not,” Battie said during the meeting. “Maybe there are ‘experts’ out there that say it’s a hoax. I hope that it’s not, to be honest with you.”

City Attorney Robert Fournier told the commission that Battie could not vote on the matter due to his inherent conflict of interest but could participate in the discussion. He also must seek outside legal counsel in the case.

The city commissioners maintained support for their embattled colleague. Commissioner Eric Arroyo proposed the initial option to pay Battie’s legal fees on a rolling basis, with further funding to be voted on by the commission as they decide it is necessary.

Mayor Liz Albert and Commissioner Trice said Battie himself was as much a victim as Franklin and that they did not believe he would act maliciously.

Alpert said when she first met Battie, when the commissioner was first elected, she thought, “Oh my goodness, he doesn’t know anything!” But he had then proven himself a quick learner and a hard worker. Trice said she didn’t believe Battie would participate in a conspiracy to intentionally hurt Franklin’s reputation.

The commissioners brushed aside Harrison’s insistence that Battie couldn’t be unaware that the document he showed them was fake. During his comment, the attorney presented screenshots of Battie’s text messages to show that the commissioner had seen Franklin’s original Facebook post - a picture of actual gorillas with the caption “Gorillas in the midst of being gorillas are on my mind.”

It appears the caption was photoshopped onto a picture of Battie and Borysciewicz, which is what Battie publicly decried at a Sarasota City Commission meeting on Jan. 16. The exact origin of the hoax image remains unclear.

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10 public commenters spoke on the issue, more than for any other item on the city commission’s agenda. Included among the pack was Ron Kashden, Franklin’s husband and a candidate for city commission.

“Commissioners, you should not condone such behavior, let alone financially support it,” Kashden said. “Basic morality compels you to denounce it and take whatever steps necessary to get to the bottom of it to prevent such sadistic political theater from ever happening again.”

Fournier introduced the agenda item before the commission and outlined their three options. The first was to wait for a court to decide whether Battie had acted in his official capacity as an elected official. If he was, then the city would be obligated to reimburse him.

The second was that the city fund Battie’s legal defense from the lawsuit’s commencement to its conclusion. Fournier referred to it as a “pay as you go” plan. Even if the city has no legal obligation to cover Battie’s fees, they could still choose to pay them.

The last option was to pay for Battie’s defense in increments, with conditions such as an initial cap requiring approval to release more funds. Fournier said he felt a disadvantage to this would be that the commission would have to revisit the issue multiple times. This was the option Arroyo first proposed, which the other commissioners with eligible votes agreed with.

As Harrison left city hall, he said he found the city commission's insistence of Battie's innocence and victimhood bizarre.

"Apparently, Sarasota has a serial hoaxer running around, doing this for no apparent reason that anybody can figure out," Harrison said. "Be on the lookout as you drive home tonight, lock your doors, because there's a serial hoaxer running around the streets."

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota City Commission votes to pay Battie's legal defense