Angeline Mathis, former chairperson of the Cobb Board of Ethics, has recused herself from Commission Chairman Tim Lee’s ethics hearing tonight, after her ex-husband became Lee’s lead counsel and requested that she be taken off the case.
Lee is now being represented by Ben Mathis, chairman of the Cobb Chamber of Commerce and partner in a prominent law firm. Ben Mathis replaces a lawyer from his firm who represented Lee in the October preliminary hearing, during which Angeline Mathis sharply questioned aspects of Lee’s defense.
Angeline Mathis was one of five votes to proceed with tonight’s full hearing on an ethics complaint, which accuses Lee of improperly hiring an outside attorney to negotiate with the Atlanta Braves and then using private email accounts to skirt the open records law.
Angeline Mathis stepped down reluctantly, writing in an email to ethics board chairman Mike Patellis on Wednesday that the request to have her recused is “troublesome” because it fails to “consider the central ethical issue of whether chairman Lee can create a conflict by changing lead counsel after the board has conducted initial deliberations and voted to investigate the chairman’s conduct.”
Angeline Mathis served on the board during two other ethics complaints filed against Lee this year — both of which were dismissed. There was no complaint about her service during either of those proceedings.
Ethics board attorney Lynn Rainey, who has recused himself from the case but is still serving as the board’s secretary, said it is unclear if tonight’s hearing will be delayed as a result of the recusal.
Here is Angeline Mathis’ full email:
Dear Chairman Patellis,
I have reviewed the Request for Recusal filed today by Chairman Lee’s new lead counsel. As you know, in today’s motion Chairman Lee seeks my recusal from continued service on the Board of Ethics as it considers the third set of charges brought against the Chairman. You will remember that the Ethics Board first asked me in March of this year to serve temporarily, and that I participated in the consideration and dismissal of the first and second rounds of ethics charges brought against Chairman Lee.
Against this background, the recusal motion filed today is surprising. In both facts and argument, it is wrong in several material respects. Particularly troublesome is the failure of the lawyers filing the motion and supporting it with affidavits to consider the central ethical issue of whether Chairman Lee can create a conflict by changing lead counsel after the Board has conducted initial deliberations and voted to investigate the Chairman’s conduct.
Nevertheless, I have decided that it is in the best interests of the Board to continue its important work without the distraction of this recusal motion. I resign from service on the Board, effective immediately. I regret any delay the proceedings may suffer, but, given the recusal motion, delay seems preferable to having the Board distracted by a procedural stratagem tied to my continued service.
Of course, I will miss working with the Board members and lawyers. Please convey my best wishes and thanks to all of them.
Sincerely,
Angeline
About the Author
