Good evening.

Welcome to the Cranson City Council special council meeting this evening, which is Wednesday, August 27th.

At this time, it asked for the clerk to please take the role.

Councilman Campopiano.

Present.

Councilman Banano.

Present.

Councilwoman Graziano.

Present.

Councilwoman Horaion.

Present.

Councilman Andrew Har.

Present.

Councilman Ritz.

Present.

Councilman Trafficanti.

Present.

Council Vice President Wall.

Here.

Council President Marino.

Present.

At this time and ask for a motion to take the agenda out of order.

Motion to take the agenda out of order.

Second.

Any discussion?

There being none.

Clerk, please take the role.

Councilman Campopiano.

Yes.

Councilman Banano.

Yes.

Councilwoman Graziano.

Yes.

Councilwoman Horrian.

Yes.

Councilman Anduhar.

Yes.

Councilman Ritz.

Yes.

Councilman Trafficanti.

Yes.

Council Vice President Wall.

Yes.

Council President Marino.

Yes.

Move on to item four, executive session.

At this time it make a motion to go into executive session.

Pursuant to Ryland General Laws, Section 42 46 dash five, subsection A, subsection two for litigation or prospective litigation regarding patent versus Cranston City Council.

An OMA complaint dated August 21 relative to special council meeting of August 2025.

Do I have a motion?

Motion.

Second.

Any discussion.

Councilman Ritz.

Um I've heard a lot from residents about this.

This executive session here, too.

Um you know, uh a lot of the residents want to hear this in open discussion.

I know there's parts of it that can't be, but I've heard loud and clear from from the residents they want openness and transparency.

A lot of them reached out, several of them I can see here.

Um whenever I vote no, I want to explain no, but I'm going to be a no on this because I feel like we should have this in open session as much as we can.

Thank you.

Councilman Campo Piano.

I agree with uh Councilman Ritz.

Thank you for bringing that forward.

I am against going executive session.

We just need to remain uh transparent what's going on.

I understand there's some legal issues that we can't, but there's nothing that says we can't discuss this in open forum, and I urge everyone on this council to agree with me.

The matters before us were uh we're we were warned beforehand and we're warned during the meeting.

We were warned twice that we were an open meeting's violation.

So whatever needs to be discussed can be discussed in open forum councilman Andah.

Uh thank you, Madam President.

Um, I would like to ask the city solicitor, I think due to litigation purposes, we have to go into executive session.

So I'd like uh our uh city solicitor malay to explain that law to us.

Councilman, it is a an exception to the open meetings uh requirement, if you will.

It's not a uh an absolute.

So should the council choose to go into executive session, the council could could choose to vote that way.

However, it's not a absolute requirement that this matter be discussed in executive session or in the public under the law.

Thank you.

Council Vice President Wall.

Just just so I'm hearing the solicitor correctly, it is an exception that is included in the open meetings law.

Is that correct, solicitor?

Yes.

Thank you, solicitor.

You're welcome.

Any other council members wish to be heard?

Okay.

Um I appreciate the commentary from council members.

Um however, according to the law, we do have the right to go into executive session, and frankly, it makes no um rightful sense in which to handle it any other way when the city is facing a lawsuit.

So at this time, if the clerk can please take the role.

At this time, I'll entertain a motion to come out of executive session.

Motion to come out of executive session.

Second.

Any discussion?

There being none, Clerk.

Please take the roll.

Councilman Campopiano.

Yes.

Councilman Banano.

Yes.

Councilwoman Graziano.

Yes.

Councilwoman Horayan.

Yes.

Councilman Anduhar.

Yes.

Councilman Ritz.

Yes.

Councilman Traficante.

Yes.

Council Vice President Wall?

Yes.

Council President Marino.

Yes.

Motion to seal the minutes of the executive session.

Second.

Any discussion?

There being none, Clerk, please take the role.

Councilman Campo Piano.

No.

Councilman Banano.

Yes.

Councilwoman Graziano.

Yes.

Councilwoman Horrian.

Yes.

Councilman Anduhar.

Yes.

Councilman Ritz.

No.

Councilman Traficante.

Yes.

Council Vice President Wall?

Yes.

Council President Marino.

Yes.

Motion carries.

At this time, I will for new business pass the gavel to Council Vice President Wall.

Thank you, Madam President.

Uh first up, we have remarks of the City Council legal attorney, uh Stephen Angel, as to the role of the City City Council's legal counsel.

Uh Attorney Angel, you do have the floor.

Thank you, Mr.

Vice President.

Good evening, members of the council.

It's been my honor to serve the city of Cranston in many different capacities over the years.

From being appointed by the Auditor General to help tackle the city's $250 million financial crisis in 2003, when the city teetered on the brink of receivership and chairing the financial review board during during those trying times, to advising this body under multiple council presidents of both parties.

My commitment has always been the same.

Serve with integrity and apply the law is written.

For me, the law has never been about political convenience.

Under two different council presidents, I have seen how doing my job fairly and honestly, interpreting in applying the law was treated as a threat by those who preferred political parlor games over good governance.

Sadly, what Cranston City government has become under the Hopkins administration is not a place where collaboration and truth prevail.

The volume of blatantly false and misleading information funneled to the council, the public and the media from this administration is staggering and deeply concerning.

It clouds decisions, damages operations, and ultimately hurts the residents.

Recent events have now gone beyond political games and policy battles.

This is now indeed the full blown circus that the Hopkins administration sought to achieve from the time that it took office.

The administration, their cronies, sycophants, and enabler have crossed the line into deeply personal matters, and their conduct is both appalling and wrong.

The accusations and rock throwing directed at me recently and previously have never been about valuing integrity in government, ethics, or the law.

This administration has gone so far as to hold private meetings with individuals who have no connection with or no interest in the governance of the city for the purpose of pursuing a vendetta against me, both prefer personally and professionally.

These activities have occurred among other places in this building in City Hall, and they have involved a variety of top Hopkins administration officials, some of whom are in this room, and some of those collaborators are also in this room.

The accusations need to go checked, not unchecked.

None of this addition of the Hopkins circus is about Cranston or governance.

This is about targeting me personally and professionally.

To be clear, there are no credible complaints of any kind in any credible forum pending against me, other than those that have been made in the social media toilet.

There are, however, deeply personal matters that do not deserve to play themselves out in the cruel and vicious spotlight orchestrated by this administration, their enablers, cronies and sycophants.

Therefore, effective September 30th, 2025, in order to give this council time to transition.

I resigned my position as legal counsel to the Cranston City Council.

I have provided.

I have I have provided a letter to that effect to the city clerk, and I respectfully request that it be entered into the record this evening and that a copy be distributed to the individual individual members of the city council.

I'd be looking for a motion to enter Attorney Angel's letter of recommendation of uh resignation into the record.

Second.

So moved.

Discussion.

There being none, Clerk, would you please, Councilman Benano?

I just um I would be remiss if I did not point out that Councilman Campo Piano is a minority leader.

And uh you called me the minority leader.

But other than that, thank you.

Any other discussion?

Clerk, would you please call it all?

Councilman Campopiano.

Yes.

Councilman Bonano.

Yes.

Councilwoman Graziano.

Yes.

Councilwoman Horayan.

Yes.

Councilman Ian Duhar.

Yes.

Councilman Ritz.

Yes.

Councilman Traficante.

Yes.

Council Vice President Wall.

Yes.

Council President Marino.

Abstain.

Thank you.

Next item of business would be remarks from the City Council President Jessica Marino, as to the City Council leadership.

Thank you, Council Vice President Wall.

Earlier this year at inauguration, some of you may recall that I shared the following comments as part of my council president acceptance speech.

Quote While it is sad for me to say, I do think it's essential that I acknowledge that we are living in a time that sometimes feels like we are taking 10 steps back.

If we all want better, then we need to take responsibility in doing better.

We all have a part in that.

But hate comes at a cost that no one can afford.

And yet it seems to have a more acceptable place in our society than it ever should.

Close quotes.

We live in a society now where people hide behind keyboards, hide behind their computers and their phones with malicious intentions and say whatever they want without consequence.

We live in a society where voices of a few, few, merely because they are loud and repeated, are then viewed by too many as acceptable and normalized as true.

People need to wake up and take responsibility for their own role in judgment and in hate.

And why politics and people are so vitriolic.

And I'm not going to start now.

It comes at too high of a price to me and those that I love.

I no longer feel the joy that I felt in public service.

When other elected officials and their staff who do know better, take on that same malicious and vindictive behavior as opposed to serving the needs of the public and doing what's in the best interest of the city, then I fail to see how I can make a difference any longer.

And most certainly, I fail to see the joy in that service.

And any suggestion otherwise is simply malicious.

When you hear and see the heckling, the negative remarks, and the high fiving, that should tell you all you need to know about people's true intentions and the ugliness that is right in front of you.

I have heard from countless people that they fully support me, countless.

You have no idea.

Some of them are in this room.

And they feel as though my leadership on council is needed now more than ever, as they have seen my integrity and my professionalism in action over these last five years on council.

I understand that my resignation will come as a disappointment to many, but I have faith in most of my colleagues on council, that they will continue with representing the public in the best interest of the city with integrity and professionalism.

I want to thank Councilman Andah, and I want to thank Councilman Bonano.

And finally, I would like to thank Council Vice President Wall.

I understand, like I said, this will come as a disappointment.

I have faith in you that I have mentioned most specifically as my colleagues on council, that you will continue with representing the public in the best interest of the city with integrity and professionalism.

That's all I ask.

Now it's time to focus on me and the people I care deeply about.

My resignation letter I will be submitting this evening.

And that reads as follows, dear colleagues, serving the people of Cranston as a citywide councilwoman and for the past three years as council president has been one of the greatest honors of my life.

I am deeply grateful to the residents of this city for placing their trust in me, not once or twice, but three times as the top vote getter citywide in each of my elections.

In fact, in the most recent general election of 2024, I received more votes than even the winning mayoral candidate.

That support from Cranston families is something I will carry with pride and humility forever.

Right from the start of that first term in 2021, the council was immediately charged with navigating the aftershocks of a global pandemic and the many internal and external challenges that came with it.

We persevered through those times together, always keeping our residents' needs at the forefront.

Unfortunately, one of the most persistent challenges we faced was not born of crisis, but was born of choice.

Too often, the mayor's office chose obstruction over cooperation, discord over dialogue, and personal politics over public good.

Instead of working collaboratively with the council to advance solutions for Cranston, unnecessary conflicts were manufactured, slowing progress and straining relationships for no reason other than a seeming unwillingness to respect shared governance.

It was more about personal triumphs than being in the interest of advancing the city.

We all call home and have raised our families.

For me, as the first female council president in our city's history, the lack of respect for my leadership too often felt rooted not in policy disagreements, but frankly, in discomfort with a woman holding authority.

While gender surely should not play a role, the reality with this mayor did not the reality was that this mayor did not conduct himself in a way that was consistent with that widely held norm.

In 2025, that is both disheartening and unacceptable for our city.

Yet here we are.

Despite these headwinds, I am proud of what we accomplished together as a council on behalf of the residents who entrusted us with this responsibility.

With that, I am writing to formally resign my seat on the Cranston City Council, effective at the conclusion of the meeting this evening.

August 27th.

As I step aside, I look forward to returning to private life, where I can devote myself fully to addressing personal and private matters outside the public eye.

To my colleagues on the council, as I identified, and most importantly to the residents of Cranston, thank you.

Thank you for your faith, your unwavering support, and the opportunity to serve Cranston will always have my heart, and I will always remain a champion for its future with gratitude and resolve.

Thank you, Council Vice President Wall.

Thank you, Council President.

Um, I would ask uh entertain a motion to enter council president Marino's letter of resignation into the record.

So moved.

Second.

Any discussion.

Yes.

Uh Councilman Trafficante.

I don't know where to begin.

You know, I've been an elected official in the city for 43 years.

I've never seen anything like this.

And I sure you have had my battles on the city council.

I just asked Mike Seapy.

Uh, but each and every time we did battle in the council floor, we thought was best for the city of Cranston.

Once the meeting was over, we went out and had a cup of coffee together.

And that's the way we should all behave.

I'm sorry this is happening tonight.

I really mean this with all sincerity.

Uh all I can say is I'm disappointed this is happening.

And I want to wish the council president and Mr.

A.

The very best.

And I thank them for their service.

Thank you, Councilman.

I'm just going to look around.

I just say just make sure everybody I get everybody before I go, and I do see Councilman Anduha.

Uh, Madam President, um, I really just want to thank you for your leadership and for teaching me things on the council uh as I came in.

I I looked at you for a lot of guidance.

So I really want to wish you the best, and I really want to thank you for everything you've done for Cranston and for this council.

Thank you, Councilman.

And I would echo uh the councilman's statement.

Uh, when I came on, uh, I was very green, and even before that, you uh you were very supportive to me.

And I thank you for all your help and uh I wish you well.

Any further endeavors, I also would be remiss if I didn't think the attorney angel.

All right.

Um did no further comments.

Clerk, would you please call a roll?

Councilman Campbiano.

Yes, Councilman Bonanno.

Yes.

Councilwoman Graziano, yes, councilwoman Horyan, yes.

Councilman Ianduar.

Yes, Councilman Ritz.

Yes.

Councilman Trafficanti.

Yes.

Council Vice President Wall.

Yes.

Council President Marino.

Thank you.

Now I'll return the gavel to Council President.

At this time entertain a motion to adjourn.

Motion to adjourn.

Second.

Okay.

Any all those in favor say aye?

Any opposed?

The ayes have it.

Good evening.