How they get away with it...

If this were a yearbook, I'd have been voted least likely to get involved in local politics. It's not really my thing. I'd much rather spend my time assuming everything is okay.

Somehow, though, I managed to go from this comfortable sort of apathy to suing the City on my own.

CURTIS V CITY OF SS - STAMPED ORIGINAL PETITION.pdf

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As I read things from other people like Jaime Mitchell and Cale McClure (they've been out here doing the Lord's work for real, y'all), what the City Council was doing concerned me enough that I began researching it on my own and re-analyzing the primary data sources. It didn't take much poking around to realize for myself the level of rot down at City Hall, particularly on the data center project.

Early in this process, though, I kept thinking "how are they able to get away with this?"

At this point now, I can tell you exactly how that is, and it's really pretty simple: The system puts the burden on the public to take action while it disadvantages them at the same time.

First, it's important to understand there's a mix of issues at play here, both legal and ethical. They're governed by different regulations, and some are harder to prove or take legal action on. Violations of the Open Meetings Act, though, are pretty straightforward, and the Act allows a local government to be sued if they violate the open meeting laws.

Cool, right? Not really.

There's not really a state agency that you can appeal to for civil remedies. The Attorney General cannot take civil action on most Open Meetings Act cases. Criminal action, yes, but they'll want the DA to look into it first. The AG doesn't have the authority under the Act to file suit unless it's about violations of the emergency meeting provisions. I've talked to the AG's office directly, and they flat out told me they don't have the authority to help here.

Side note: The stupid thing is they can take civil action on violations of open records requests (Texas Public Information Act) but not violations of open meetings. This seems like an obvious gap that state lawmakers need to figure out. But until then, the Attorney General is no help.

"Ok, so just hire an attorney and take them to court yourself."

Right. How many people do you know who have free cash laying around they want to spend fighting against the City (that has way more resources) on a public interest matter?

Even then, the problem is that, in the real world, getting an attorney to do something about it isn't nearly as easy as it sounds.

Without exaggeration, I've called no less than 25 firms between here and the surrounding counties, in Tyler, some in Dallas, and even a few in Austin. I've even contacted some public policy foundations that have taken legal action for open government issues. Not one single attorney even agreed to a consultation to review the merits of this case.

And here are a few reasons why:

• Local attorneys are reluctant to go against the City. It's not in their interest to get on the wrong side of a local governing body, particularly this one.

• Conflicts of interest. The City seems to have used lots of attorneys over the years.

• "We don't handle those types of cases at all." I guess you had to go to Hogwarts to understand basic procedural law.

• Specialized firms mainly work on behalf of cities. Most firms I called that handle government law or have specialties in open government represent or advise governmental bodies. They don't help individual plaintiffs.

• Hopkins County is outside their service area. I'm sure I'd have better luck if this were in the Dallas area, but out here, our options are more limited.

• There's not a lot of money in it. The law allows basic injunctions or motions to compel, but monetary damages are very limited and difficult to justify.

The public's options then basically boil down to: Drop the matter altogether or fight them yourself in court where you have no real idea what you're doing.

I've opted to do the latter, mainly because I have a pathological, over-developed sense of justice and fairness and a visceral contempt for incompetent authority. But I may well lose this case because I'm not an attorney, and I've never done this before.

But that's how the system works - or doesn't work. The idea that "somebody should do something about this" is a lot more out of reach than most people realize, and it allows this type of corruption to carry on in plain sight.

PS - if you know an attorney that's not a total coward and wants to do the right thing, hit me up.