CLEVELAND LEAD ADVOCATES FOR SAFE HOUSING (CLASH) TAKES FIRST STEP TO FILING WRIT OF MANDAMUS. SENDS LETTER SEEKING ACTION BY THE CLEVELAND LAW DIRECTOR TO COMPEL CITY COUNCIL CLERK TO SUBMIT PROPOSED “LEAD SAFE” ORDINANCE TO CITY COUNCIL FOR REVIEW AND VOTE OR WILL GO TO COURT TO COMPEL IT
Cleveland, OH – Attorneys for Cleveland Lead Advocates for Safe Housing (CLASH) sent the attached letter to Cleveland Law Director, Barbara Langhenry, today seeking her action as required by state and local laws to compel City Council Clerk Patricia Britt to accept and submit its proposed “Lead Safe” ordinance to City Council for review and vote as required by the city charter. If Director Langhenry refuses to compel Clerk Britt and refuses to file a Mandamus action in court, then CLASH will seek the Writ of Mandamus itself as allowed under state and local laws.
As the letter explains, CLASH believes the city charter required Clerk Britt on April 15 to submit its proposed ordinance to City Council after the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections officially certified 6,530 signatures -more than the required 5,000 signatures – of registered city voters on April 9th. It also believes the potential denial by the BOE for the proposal to go to the November ballot does not prevent Clerk Britt from fulfilling her responsibility to provide the proposal to City Council for up to 90 days of review and a vote.
“Our hope is that the Council Clerk and Law Director do the right thing so that we can avoid the time and expense of seeking a Writ of Mandamus” said Marc Dann a lawyer who signed the letter on behalf of CLASH. Attorneys Marc E. Dann and Donna Taylor-Kolis from the DannLaw Firm are CLASH legal counsel.
ABOUT CLEVELAND LEAD ADVOCATES FOR SAFE HOUSING Cleveland Lead Advocates for Safe Housing (CLASH) is dedicated to protecting the most vulnerable citizens in the City of Cleveland. Member organizations include the Cleveland Lead Safe Network, Single Payer Access Network, Cuyahoga County Progressive Caucus, Black Lives Matter of Cuyahoga County, Cleveland End Poverty Now Coalition, Organize!Ohio, Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless and the Cleveland Democratic Socialists of America.