EVANSTON — During council comments at the beginning of the city council meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 20, Councilmember Jesse Lind read a letter from the majority of the council expressing “no confidence” in Mayor Kent Williams. The council members supporting the letter are Lind, Tim Lynch, Mike Sellers and Jen Hegeman.

The letter began, “Let the record reflect the improper adjournment by the mayor, Kent Williams, of the city council meeting of Aug. 6, 2024, was in direct breach of procedure and in violation of the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America, Amendment 1 of the Bill of Rights and of Article 1, Sections 1, 3 and 7 of the Constitution of the State of Wyoming. Official meetings allow redress of comments and grievances and must be adjourned by a vote of attending council members.”

Because the mayor abruptly ending the meeting on Aug. 6, the four councilmembers claim Williams violated freedom of speech of council members and the public and the four asked that the Aug. 6 proceedings be held null and void and the results stricken from the record.

The letter included quotes directly from the U.S. and Wyoming constitutions pertaining to the power residing with the people, freedom of speech and that “absolute, arbitrary power over the lives, liberty and property of freemen exists nowhere in the republic, not even in the largest majority.”

Lind reads in the letter, the commitment of the council as public servants elected to represent the collective voice of the people and their right to free speech.

He then stated, “Due to the mayor’s actions and violations of procedure, and his blatant disregard to uphold the basic rights granted to the citizens of Evanston by the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Wyoming, documented by the public record, during the City Council meeting of Aug. 6, 2024, we motion for a vote of no confidence against the mayor.”

Lynch, Sellers, and Hegeman concurred with Lind. Councilmember Evan Perkes said he knew nothing about the letter, and David Welling, also appearing to be caught off guard, only said that he was disgusted.

Williams, unsure of what to do next, then asked Evanston City Attorney Mark Harris how he should proceed, and Harris told him to go on with the business as usual.

In the few days following the meeting, the Herald reached out to each council member to get their response to the action and to ask each how they had arrived at the no-confidence letter.

Lind’s said that, with all of the recent events concerning a citizen’s concern that was mishandled, and how the mayor responded, he was concerned that the council had been given a “black eye.”

“We wanted to say we are not on board with what Kent is doing, nor with his behavior at the meeting,” Lind said. “He should have handled the situation like an adult. We aren’t asking for Williams’ resignation; we just want him to work with us and follow protocol.”

Lynch said Williams has excluded the four of them from private meetings with the other two council members. He said Williams has always excluded him and, when he was president of the council and the mayor was gone, instead of Lynch being asked to run the meetings, Williams would ask then-attorney Dennis Boal to lead the meeting.

“I will be happy to give a full statement of his dealings behind the scenes in January,” Lynch said. “I’m disgusted, and I only have four months to serve. Until then, I stand behind our statement of no confidence.”

Williams told the Herald, “I have no idea what meetings Mr Lynch is referring to and I have never excluded any council member from any meeting...” He also said he has no memory of Boal conducting meetings.

Sellers said his ideal hope was that the council and the mayor could all work together and be more user-friendly so the community would be listened to.

“I just want things to be right, and for us to be advocates for the people as leaders in the city,” Sellers said.

Perkes responded to the Herald via text message.

“After reviewing all possible information, I cannot see where the Mayor has done anything but express his views. He deserves that like anyone else,” Perkes wrote. “I am disappointed that the mayor and council can’t do what’s best for our citizens by compromising. Seems to me that it’s gotten worse over the last several years. The mayor should listen to what the council wants, and the council should quit attacking him when they don’t agree. None of us should be getting our way all the time. Let’s work together for the good of the community.”

Welling told the Herald that when he used the word “disgusting” after the reading of the letter, he was referring to his perception that the four council members had met illegally.

“The bigger story is they, the four, should be charged with holding an illegal meeting in violation of the open meeting law. Four is a quorum, and the meeting should be advertised and open to the public,” Welling said. “Also, in response to the statement about the mayor not asking for a motion to adjourn the meeting; we have never had a motion to adjourn that I remember.”

The Herald reached out to Harris to see if he could explain legally what the statement of no confidence means. Instead, he pointed to the majority of the council.

“You should contact the four council members who supported the statement regarding their intent,” he wrote. “I will not speculate on what they intended to do or accomplish. Neither I, three of the council members nor members of the public were provided with any statement, consulted with or asked for any input in the matter.”

The Herald had previously asked the four council members if they had met as a group to write the letter of no confidence — all four denied doing so. They had never gathered together to discuss the matter, each of them said. Hegeman said she had called attorney Elizabeth Lance, who represents WAM (Wyoming Association of Municipalities), to ask for advice on how to handle their concerns and was advised not to hold a meeting and was given advice on what to include in the letter.

Instead of meeting, Hegeman said she called Lind, Lynch and Sellers individually, and emailed each of them one at a time. She said they did not ever hold a group meeting, so they did not violate open meeting laws.

In moving forward, the four expressed that they would like to work positively with Mayor Williams and emphasized that they will not be excluded from private meetings and decisions.

In reply for a request for comment, Williams told the Herald that he is not considering resigning.

On Monday, Aug. 26, Harris held a press conference in front of a few people in which he criticized local media coverage and said Williams had made no improprieties during the Aug. 6 meeting. He also indicated that he’s working with Williams to investigate Lind, Lynch, Hegeman and Sellers for potentially holding an illegal meeting.

In other business during the Aug. 20 meeting, Evanston Senior Planner DuWayne Jacobsen was seeking to wrap up unfinished business with an ordinance approving and authorizing the Ridgecrest 6th addition final plat, which was approved.

Orders of new business included approval of an ordinance regarding pawnshops and pawn regulation, namely finance charges and maturities. Mayor Williams inquired if the updated codes were just “bringing our ordinances in line with state statute,” which Harris confirmed.

Director of Public Works Gordon Robinson requested renewal of a joint funding agreement for a U.S. Geological Study (USGS) stream gauge for the Bear River. The gauge is used to monitor and record water levels, streamflow data and flood monitoring. The motion was approved.

Resident Bradley John Mills spoke during the public participation segment of the meeting. He first thanked the council for the “beautiful roads” by his house in Aspen Grove and expressed gratitude to the board for allowing him to read his letters. Mills noted that he’s “blessed to speak at your forum” and at the school board and county commission meetings.

Mills asserted that his voice has been “denied access to publication … or altered,” seemingly referring to the Uinta County Herald. While addressing the mayor directly, Mills mentioned the oath that civil servants swear to and that “leadership is serving others, not ourselves.” He added, “Sorry to see the upheaval. Accurate reporting of facts is essential.”

Upon the conclusion of further business or public input, Mayor Williams asked attorney Harris, “Do I need an attorney to adjourn the meeting?”

Harris responded by explaining Roberts Rules of Order, and the meeting was adjourned.