Allentown city council could vote to hire a lawyer Wednesday to sue the mayor over investigation disagreement

Allentown City Council is looking to hire a lawyer for a proposed lawsuit against Mayor Matt Tuerk over disagreements about the hire of independent investigator Scott Curtis.

On council’s Wednesday agenda is a resolution to approve hiring Philadelphia law firm Brown McGarry Nimeroff for “legal services in an action adverse to the Mayor of Allentown, and/or the Mayor’s Administration.”

According to a letter of engagement attached to council’s agenda, attorney Mary Kay Brown would be City Council’s lead counsel for the proposed lawsuit, if approved.

“We are hiring this individual to go to court for us,” said council member Ed Zucal.

Spokespersons for the city did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

City Council last year declared its intent to pursue an independent investigation of alleged discrimination and racism in City Hall after the Allentown NAACP published an open letter accusing Tuerk and other city leaders of ignoring and failing to address complaints.

Tuerk said discrimination is not tolerated in Allentown and his administration has investigated and responded to complaints.

In June, council voted 6-1 to hire FLEO Investigations, owned by former FBI agent Curtis, to conduct the inquiry.

Several days after the City Council vote Tuerk issued a memo declaring Curtis’ hire “void” because council did not follow city procurement procedures to employ him.

The memo said Curtis’ hire is invalid for several reasons, including that Curtis was initially disqualified because of a technical problem with his application, and that City Council did not issue a proper “request for proposals” but instead placed a “help wanted” ad in The Morning Call.

Council members argued they were not obligated to follow city procurement procedures, because the city charter allows council to conduct independent investigations, but does not explicitly outline how it should select an independent investigator.

Now, the question of who’s interpretation of the city charter is correct may lie with a Lehigh County judge.

City council will vote on the hire of Brown Brown McGarry Nimeroff at its Wednesday council meeting, at 6:30 p.m. in council chambers.

According to the letter of engagement, the law firm will charge $350 an hour for services, which is a discounted rate. Associates and paralegals who assist will also charge $225 or $150 an hour, respectively. The firm will bill the city for services on a monthly basis.

Reporter Lindsay Weber can be reached at Liweber@mcall.com .