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Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Rumor Mill: Spadoni Asked to Resign

Bethlehem Attorney Chris Spadoni, who has served as Solicitor to City Council for the past 17 years, has been asked to resign, according to inside sources who asked not to be named. Spadoni himself declined comment, and I have emailed Council President J. Willie Reynolds for confirmation. 

In addition to his municipal work in Bethlehem, Spadoni has served several other local governments, including Easton and Northampton County. He has also been an assistant District Attorney and was Chief Public Defender for four years. 

As their Solicitor, Spadoni could advise Council that any decision to terminate him must be made in public. A back room decision to replace him would violate the state Sunshine Act.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good God. Willie, Richuti and Waldron are a new generation of Bethlehem Dem's. They need to make their own statement and stop kissing up to the Callahan Clan. The Clan is done, powerless. Yesterdays news.

So now they will dump Spadoni to give a job to another Callahan Clan attorney. The rumor mill is already running wild, Spirk, Kelly, a few other names.

Wheen does this nonsense end?

Anonymous said...

Since this is a rumor mill post, the rumor mill has it that Karen Dolan is really pushing for Spadoni to be ousted and Jack Spirk to be installed.

Bernie, since the Council Solicitor is an employee of council, this would be a personnel matter that could be discuss in Executive Session, but would need to be voted on in a public meeting.
However, I understand that the Council Solicitor in Bethlehem serves as the pleasure of the Council President, so he could just fire him.

Anonymous said...

Just more of the same.

How does this have anything to do with the serving of it's citizens?

More of the same it's about us (council) rather than the citizen's they are supposed to be serving!

Bernie O'Hare said...

8:59,

I do not have the ordinance in front of me, and am unable to locate it. But I seriously doubt the accuracy of the assertion that the Solicitor serves at the pleasure of the Council President.

The City Clerk serves at the pleasure Of Council, not its President, in the codified ordinances I have seen. I suspect that is also so for its lawyer.
If the Solicitor serves at the pleasure of Council, then he can only be fired by Council, not its President. This means that Willie either had no authority to make the call he did, or Council acted outside the Sunshine Act.

It's probably an issue he should check out with Spadoni.

Bernie O'Hare said...

"the rumor mill has it that Karen Dolan is really pushing for Spadoni to be ousted and Jack Spirk to be installed."

While Jack Spirk is a great lawyer, he's white and male and does not live on the south side. Not sure that Karen could live with that. I also heard he's a Catholic.

Karen "we need more diversity" Dolan wants to replace one old fart Catholic male with another?

That rumor is hard to believe.

Anonymous said...

Just curious...where does jack spirk work?

Bernie O'Hare said...

Atty Spirk is a very good teacher and devotes most of his time to that, though I see him at the courthouse. I do not want to see this very good person disparaged.

Anonymous said...

O'Hare you are a miserable old, white, male bastard!

I finally got a first and account of her "interrogations" and I was stunned. Somehow she comes off as more close-minded than the candidates she slimmed!

If one is too white and too male can one also be too Latina and too female?

She is bizarre!

Bernie O'Hare said...

"O'Hare you are a miserable old, white, male bastard!"

Actually, I am black Irish. My family is from northwest Ireland. It has long been thought that we are dark and swarthy bc of hour hospitality to sailors that the damn English would shipwreck off our shores.

Or perhaps it's neanderthal genes.

Bit i agree with the rest. I am old, miserable and male, although my sex has been somewhat irrelevant for at least 5 years.

So hell, I'm old and miserable.

Anonymous said...

Spadoni is a jerk. It's time for City council to upgrade. Too bad they can't move Dolan out the same way. She drinks or smokes too much of the water from Monocacy Creek.

Bernie O'Hare said...

When you make these accusations, why don't you sign your name?

Anonymous said...

"Actually, I am black Irish."

Wow. I'm black irish too. Sligo. explains our natural aversion for each other.