Resident Accuses Clerk of Leaking FOIA Documents

The Shelby Township Board of Trustees denied resident Michael Ward’s request to appeal a $21 charge for a Freedom of Information Act request.

Ward accused Clerk Terri Kowal of sharing the information in the documents with Trustee Lisa Manzella before handing the documents over to him.

The documents in question regarded Manzella, who is embattled in a defamation lawsuit with Ward, after he alleged during a 2010 recall petition that Manzella was drinking and driving when she was involved in a single car crash in 2005, but was not cited because of politics.

Ward said he realized the information had been shared with Manzella and handed over to her attorney to be used in a deposition that had taken place the day before.

“We have a double set of rules,” said Ward. “I paid $21 to get those copies so she could use it in a deposition.”

Kowal said she routinely sends FOIA requests to other trustees before releasing them to the person who requested the information.

“It’s typical for her to send an email notification. Is it typical for me to ask for a copy of the information that was about me?” asked Manzella, who added that Kowal did nothing wrong.  

“If you want me to pay the $21, then I will,” said Manzella.

Shelby Attorney Rob Huth said since the information was public, and it’s available to all people, he sees no problem with the information being shared.

“I don’t know if there is technically anything illegal but we can let the public draw their own conclusions,” said Trustee Michael Flynn.

Kowal said any trustee can gather and release FOIA requests, and she would be happy to give FOIA responsibilities over to another department, citing the amount of work that goes into gathering the information needed.

“We put hours into gathering that information. I gave you the benefit of doubt and only charged you for one hour for labor,” said Kowal.

“If it’s the $21 dollars, maybe we can take up a collection here and repay you,” said Kowal.

Ward bit back and said it’s not about the money; it’s about integrity and double standards.

Shelby resident Nick Nightingale walked up to the podium and expounded on Ward’s allegations of double standards within the city.

Nightingale said when Supervisor Rick Stathakis recently called a meeting with the chief of police and several detectives to revisit the single car crash involving Manzella, it was a waste of taxpayer money on a private citizen's issue.

“Any resident can come to you and say I have my own personal agenda and lawsuit and can use city resources,” said Nightingale.

Ward said he asked the board to put his complaint on the agenda because he wants the people of Shelby Township to know what’s going on behind closed doors.

“You have to be doing a better job than this. You can’t be tipping people off,” Ward said to Kowal.