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WPEC-TV CBS12 News :: News - Treasure Coast News - Port St. Lucie mayor's personal e-mails sparking calls of resignation

Port St. Lucie mayor's personal e-mails sparking calls of resignation

UPDATE: There are unconfirmed reports tonight of a possible protest Thursday morning and evening at city hall in Port St. Lucie. This all stems from emails the mayor sent from her home computer.

Those emails were released this week from a private home address and sent to city council. They suggest Mayor JoAnn Faiella was on a path to get rid of the city attorney and find ammo against a police captain who was laid off in April.

The mayor did acknowledge to city staff she wrote the emails, but to date has yet to publicly comment on them. So far no legal action has been taken since the emails were released.

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- A mayor is under fire from residents for emails she sent from her home computer. Those once personal emails are now public record sent to city council this week.

It's not exactly business as usual at city hall. Emails released this week from a private home address suggest Port St. Lucie Mayor JoAnn Faiella was on a path to get rid of the city attorney, and find ammo against a police captain who was laid off in April.

The mayor is refusing to comment, and is referring inquiries to her attorneys.

One e-mail to a resident states, "I need your help, I want to set up Ore..Lets put or head together and think of something????...So (former mayor Patricia Christensen) is still starting trouble and the fact that (Orr) is talking to her bothers me especially on city time."

Apparently, referring to city attorney Roger Orr, sanctioned this year for having an attorney on his staff behave badly, and police believe, she was driving under the influence. Orr escaped firing. His attorney Gabrielle Taylor did not.

More emails appear to target high-ranking officers at the police department. "I looked at  the memo that D'agostino wrote yesterday...So I am just gathering amo against him. I also spoke to FDLE and said that D'agostino is crying and call them corrupt now also."

The e-mails suggests she's talking about former police captain Joe D'Agostino, now suing her for defamation and also party to a federal wrongful termination lawsuit against the city. D'Agostino was let go in the police reorganization in April this year. That decision made by the city manager, not the mayor, to remove high-level supervisors and place 22 new officers on the streets.

City manager Greg Oravec today told us these emails concern the city council and the mayor, not the administration. So far no legal action has been taken since the emails were released. The mayor did acknowledge to city staff she wrote the emails, but to date has yet to publicly comment on them. The city manager reaffirms the police reorganization and all hiring and firing decisions made on his watch were to save taxpayers money and not for any political purpose.Port St. Lucie mayor's personal e-mails sparking calls of resignation

Wednesday, July 11 2012, 10:08 PM EDT

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