A judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit seeking to remove Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo from office.
Little Havana business owners Bill Fuller and Martin Pinilla, who won a multi-million-dollar lawsuit against the commissioner, filed the lawsuit back in June.
"The question is, who is going to uphold the City charter, the constitution of the City of Miami? The Florida Supreme Court states it is the circuit courts that are to do that," said attorney Jeff Gutchess, who represents the businessmen.
The plaintiffs' attorneys cite the “Miami’s Citizens’ Bill of Rights” under the city charter, which states that any public official or employee who is found by the court to have willfully violated a resident’s freedom of speech shall forfeit his or her employment.
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"We stand by the judge’s well-reasoned order he was sued in the first case in his individual capacity," attorney Christina Ceballos Levy said.
The lawsuit was based on the result of the case he lost against the businessmen in federal court. In his ruling, the judge noted he was sued as an individual. The plaintiffs’ attorney alleges by the very nature of the case, he was found guilty as a public official and the city is also liable.
"We believe the city will pay the $63 million," Gutchess said. "We have filed another lawsuit against the city.
The judge also noted Fuller and Pinilla are not City of Miami residents.
Carollo did not attend the hearing Wednesday but spoke later from his district office.
"In every case they have against me or the city, they keep filing stuff, it’s nonstop," he said.
He is confident he will win the appeal he has filed against the $63 million judgment against him.
"Lastly the judge told them, what if Mr. Carollo wins his appeal? You expect me to throw him out of office now? And if he wins the appeal then what happens?" Carollo said.
