DAVENPORT, Iowa — Court records show a former Davenport City Council alderwoman says she was not asked to review or vote on three settlement agreements the City made with former employees, including a $1.6 million payout with former City Administrator Corri Spiegel.
Former Alderwoman Judith Lee represented Davenport's 8th Ward until Dec. 2023. She recently testified in the case between resident Dr. Allen Diercks and the City regarding the settlement agreements
In sworn testimony, Lee says she was not made aware of the Spiegel agreement until it was brought up in an Oct. 4 executive session, just two days before it was signed by former City Attorney Tom Warner. Lee says she was "not provided, nor requested for review, nor did (she) approve, consent to, or vote in an open meeting or even in a closed meeting on" the settlement agreements with Spiegel and other former employees Tiffany Thorndike and Samantha Torres.
The following paragraph is from Lee's testimony:
"I was never approached by any member of the Davenport Legal Department, the Mayor or any member of the City Council in any way regarding the Spiegel settlement agreement document, the Thorndike settlement agreement document, or the Torres Settlement agreement document, before Thomas D. Warner signed these three agreements, nor was I present at any open or closed session in which a vote to approve any of the written agreements were taken by any number of the 10 members of the Davenport City Council."
Lee goes on to say that she was not aware of Torres' or Thorndike's agreements until they were made publicly available through a Freedom of Information Act request in November, months after the agreements were signed on Sept. 8.
The former alderwoman also testified she had no part in the statement from City Council that was sent alongside Spiegel's settlement agreement to local media. Beneath the signatures on Spiegel's settlement agreement, a statement is included that says the agreement received "unanimous Council consent." Lee alleges this is a false statement in her testimony, saying there is no evidence she approved the agreement and that she would've voted "no" on all three had the agreements "come before the City Council for an open session vote" before being ratified on Dec. 13. Lee says she attended that December council meeting via phone due to being out of town and was not called to vote on the ratification.
"My good faith belief as a former Davenport alderwoman is that each of the Thorndike, Torres, and Spiegel settlement agreements was unlawfully signed by Thomas D. Warner on September 8, 2023 and October 6, 2023, outside of his authority, without public notice, public hearing, notice to the entire City Council nor public discussion and roll call votes by the entire Davenport City Council."
News 8 has reached out to the City of Davenport and awaits comment on this matter.
Read Lee's full testimony
Spiegel separation agreement
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