Explanation
BACKGROUND: The Columbus City Attorney’s Office faces an ongoing conflict of interest pertaining to the need to conduct probable cause evaluations and represent the City in the prosecution of City employees of the Columbus Division of Police for criminal wrongdoing associated with the police response to George Floyd protests occurring in the City beginning in late May 2020. The City Attorney deemed it in the best interest of the City to assign a Special Prosecutor to such matters so as to avoid the conflict of interest and to assure the independence of the review and litigation process. The City Attorney engaged Kathleen Garber, Attorney at Law, on August 10, 2020 and in exchange for said services, the City agreed to pay Ms. Garber up to $15,000 which was subsequently modified on January 31, 2021 to up to $30,000 to account for the expansion of the scope of Ms. Garber’s services which had occurred on October 7, 2020 and modified again on April 12, 2021 per Ordinance No. 0860-2021 passed on April 5, 2021, to allow for continued representation. This additional modification is needed to extend the term of the existing contract and continue this representation uninterrupted.
FISCAL IMPACT: This contract modification will be funded by the City Attorney’s Office. The amount of the contract modification is $8,000.00. The total amount of this contract, as modified, is $88,000.00.
COMPANY: Kathleen Garber, Attorney at Law, Vendor No.: 033533, 8012 Golfview Court, Columbus, OH 43235
Title
To authorize the City Attorney to modify an existing contract for special prosecution with Kathleen Garber, Attorney at Law, for probable cause determination and prosecution of matters pertaining to criminal wrongdoing by City Division of Police employees associated with the police response to the George Floyd protests; to authorize the transfer of $8,000.00; to authorize the expenditure of up to $8,000.00 from General Operating Fund; and to extend the term of the ...
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