Toledo City Councilman Rob Ludeman has asked for his name to be removed from a new ethics review committee formed after four of his colleagues were federally indicted for taking bribes.
In an email addressed to Council President Matt Cherry and his colleagues, Mr. Ludeman, the lone Republican on Toledo’s 12-member legislative body, said he has “searched for reasons to continue participating” in the committee since its first meeting Aug. 19.
“I have come to the conclusion that there is no reason beyond the State Ethics Training I have participated in, Oaths of Office I have taken, the Rules of Council I have abided by and the Charter of the City of Toledo that I hold dear, that can make me more ‘Ethical’ than I have been for my entire personal life, business life or my elected life,” Mr. Ludeman wrote on Monday. “With that said I would like my name removed from this AD Hoc Committee.”
At-large Councilman Katie Moline, a Democrat who is running for re-election to keep her appointment as Sandy Spang’s replacement on council, proposed forming the committee after Councilmen Yvonne Harper, Tyrone Riley, Larry Sykes, and Gary Johnson, all Democrats, and Toledo attorney Keith Mitchell were arrested and charged with extortion and accepting bribes.
The four council members have since pleaded not guilty, and their cases are pending in U.S. District Court.
Ms. Moline in her response to Mr. Ludeman said the committee isn’t about current council members, but about the future of the city. She chairs the committee, and Councilman Cecelia Adams is vice-chair. All council members attended the first meeting.
“The public’s confidence in Toledo City Council has been shattered. Four of our colleagues have been indicted and have accepted voluntary suspensions,” Ms. Moline wrote. “I know that taxpayers are frustrated by the fact that they are currently paying the salaries of these four individuals and will soon be paying salaries of four temporary replacements.”
She continued to say she believes the city’s charter needs updating, and she intended the committee to be a forum for officials to discuss topics including campaign finance reform, internal investigatory procedures, and creating an expulsion process for elected leaders found to be corrupt.
“With your many years of service, it would be a shame to not have your input on major structural Charter reforms,” Ms. Moline wrote to Mr. Ludeman. “However, if you do not want to be part of the conversation for comprehensive ethics reform, I will respect your decision.”
The topic came up for discussion during Tuesday’s council meeting, where Mr. Ludeman told his colleagues he would not be part of the voluntary committee.
“As C.S. Lewis said, ‘Integrity is doing the right thing even when no one is watching,’ and I think that’s easy to live by,” he said. “It doesn’t take committee hearings for months on end to figure out what is the right thing to do.”
He told The Blade he believes the committee is more “for show and not for substance,” but that he’ll be pleased if something productive does come from it.
Ms. Moline said ethics reform isn’t a joke, nor is it a partisan issue.
She acknowledged that the first meeting, which featured an overview of ethics in public service by Paul Nick, executive director of the Ohio Ethics Commission, focused on the short-term and the big picture may have been lost.
“We took a small step forward, but there are much larger goals and more action we plan to take in the long term,” she said.
Mr. Cherry initially declined to comment but later voiced support for the committee’s work.
“Councilwoman Moline’s plans for substantive changes to be introduced through this committee are exciting, and I look forward to working with her on these issues,” he said.
First Published August 28, 2020, 2:18 p.m.
