Four Burien City Councilmembers, City facing lawsuit alleging violations of Open Public Meetings Act

Four Burien City Councilmembers and the City of Burien are facing a lawsuit filed by local resident Arthur West, who alleges that several councilmembers violated Washington State’s Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA).

The lawsuit – filed in King County Superior Court on April 26, 2024 and apparently served to councilmembers and the City of Burien this week – claims that Kevin Schilling, Alex Andrade, Linda Akey, and Stephanie Mora “knowingly conducted an unlawful meeting” on April 25, 2024, without proper public notice or adherence to legal requirements (read our previous coverage of that meeting here).

According to the complaint, the four councilmembers allegedly met as a quorum and took “action” and “final action” outside the context of a properly scheduled and noticed open public meeting or executive session.

West is considered to be an “open government activist,” and has a long record of filing lawsuits against cities, agencies and officials.

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In the lawsuit, West argues that these actions were deliberate and constituted a violation of the OPMA, which mandates transparency and public access to government decision-making processes.

According to the City’s own Burien City Council Meeting Guidelines:

“If more than three (3) Councilmembers have notified the City Manager that they wish to attend a meeting where City Business will be discussed, they will notify the City Clerk’s office and a notice of a Quorum of the Council will be posted, as regulated in RCW 42.30.”

West is seeking a court ruling declaring that the named councilmembers violated the OPMA, as well as penalties of $500 for each councilmember’s violation. Additionally, the lawsuit requests an injunction to prevent further violations and reimbursement of legal costs and fees.

The City of Burien, also named in the lawsuit, is held liable for the actions of its councilmembers under the doctrines of Master and Servant, Principal and Agent, and Respondeat Superior.

The lawsuit highlights concerns over transparency and accountability within the Burien City Council, raising questions about the legality of the council’s decision-making process on April 25.

Councilmembers, City’s (Non) Response

We reached out to the councilmembers named in the lawsuit as well as the City of Burien. Councilmembers did not response, and the City said it is not able to provide comment on current or pending litigation.

Mayor Kevin Schilling referred us to his quote we cited in our previous coverage, claiming that at that April 25 event, councilmembers “didn’t discuss council business”:

“This was a press conference organized by myself and the businesses, and we didn’t discuss council business. So that was noticed as such. But also once we saw there was 4, one was removed from the room to make sure there wasn’t an issue. Couldn’t control who shows up to something I put out there either.”

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Below is our video of the April 25 event, which clearly shows that the four councilmembers mentioned in the lawsuit were present:

Download the lawsuit here (PDF file).