City Attorney Mark Anastasi’s filtering legal interpretations always intrigue. Monday at 6 p.m. the City Council’s Miscellaneous Matters Committee will meet in the Democratic Caucus Room of City Hall, inside the council chambers, for “An Informational session with City Attorney Mark Anastasi giving us a brief update on rules regarding the discussion and procedures of legal matters. Also the various types of cases pending and if we can arrange for the committee members to sit in back of court rooms when cases go before a judge.”
Institutionally, the city’s chief lawyer has an usual relationship with the city’s legislative body. Anastasi is appointed by the mayor and makes no excuse that he’s loyal to the mayor he serves. He’s worked long long hours in the 22 years as capo counsel, serving three mayors in this capacity, Joe Ganim, John Fabrizi and Bill Finch. But what happens when the interests of the legislative body that’s supposed to serve as a check on the executive branch conflict with the mayor?
The City Council has no independent legal counsel of its own so it must rely on the legal advice of the City Attorney’s Office and its 12 salaried lawyers who come under the umbrella of the mayor. There has been no will on the City Council to approve an independent legal representative strictly for its purposes.
Why do city employees serve on the elected City Council in clear violation of the City Charter? Because Anastasi argues a loophole in state statute allows it, even though case law exists dismissing state statute as a convenient excuse to circumvent local charters.
What’s wrong with just enforcing the City Charter and forcing someone to challenge it based on a state statute? Republican City Councilman Enrique Torres, pondering a mayoral run next year, says the City Council is loaded with conflicts.
The (City) Council is an atrophied branch of Bridgeport government. We are overwhelmed with work which goes undone. We are severely hamstrung with conflicted city employees. And lacking staffers to do individual work for us means we have to use (City Council President) Tom McCarthy chosen staff that don’t research anyhow. Lastly we are stuck with Anastasi and his staff. This is a group of mayoral apologists who do his bidding. My last resolution to create a moratorium was met with a juvenile legal challenge which was accepted by a conflicted committee chair.
All said the position of city councilor is a pathetic joke on the residents of Bridgeport. They are NOT represented. The interests of the employed councilors, the interests of family members and friends are all well taken care of, but your average resident? Absolutely NOT!!
Also on the committee agenda for Monday is the appointment of Maria Alves (D) to the Zoning Board of Appeal, a proposed settlement of pending litigation with Mary Pooser and proposed Workman’s Compensation Stipulation with Steve Isaac for the total sum of $25,000.
City Attorney Mark Anastasi is the “BIGGEST PROBLEM” Bridgeport has. He allows the City Council to do ONLY what he tells them to do, NOBODY has the backbone to stand up to him.
This is great. The Master Bullshit Artist is talking to 20 professional bullshit artists.
Not wrong, Fardy. Actually, I think Anastasi is being sent to the Council to lecture and intimidate. That’s the way this administration works. It brooks no dissent. Here’s the guy who is going to lay it all out for them–or else. Don’t forget we are coming up on an election year and everything is about that, everything. Sit down, shut up or else.
The City Council needs to get its act together and hire its own counsel on legal matters and, where it is needed, a consultant for say, the budget (Brannelly promises but never delivers), so the taxpayers of Bridgeport have informed opinions guiding their representatives. Anastasi is not an independent voice–he’s a crawl-on-your-belly-whatever-you-need-I’ll-deliver guy. The Council isn’t populated by experts (I know, I’m kind). Call it what it is and bring in consultants who can inform the actions or inactions of this Council. Let’s resurrect this branch of government–never too late … I hope.
Anastasi’s “legal opinions” change according to what this administration wants. “The dump isn’t part of the park.” Err, “yes it is part of the park,” wait, what? Anastasi is a big part of the problem in our city, how the hell can you trust him? He takes his orders from the mayor’s office.
Mark is a major part of the problem. First of all he is always ready to give his opinion on a matter, unfortunatly it is hardly ever provided in writing and most of the time it truly is Atty Anastasi’s opinion and not a legal opinion based on case law.
I remember one time when I was fighting the city over a tax abatement I talked to a knowledgeable lawyer who gave me the case that serves as the basis of most legal decisions on the matter. I was then told how to quickly follow the trail of subsequent rulings so I could craft my own legal opinion.
When the matter came before the committee I went toe to toe with a staff attorney and embarrassed them based on the poorly crafted opinion. Halfway through the meeting the city was asking to table the matter. When they came back two weeks later they were citing entirely different rulings and changed what was the applicable state law that granted the city to issue the abatement.
Yet if I hadn’t done a little work, the city attorney’s office would have presented the council with a legal opinion that was garbage.
So what is Mark supposed to be teaching the council about?
Very insightful intro by Lennie and contribution by Rick Torres. Comments by everyone are on target.
I usually found Mark Anastasi willing to work with the Council until the Finch administration devised ways to control them. After the Ganim years, the city council wanted to have their own counsel. Besides being contrary to the charter, it was impractical. Anastasi came up with a way to address the issue of status of requests by council members with regular meetings with the city council’s staff (me). In comes the Finch/McCarthy era and there is no longer a need to work with council members. Everything goes through McCarthy. Stay tuned.
What’s it like to stiff-arm the Bridgeport City Council while holding the Bridgeport GA delegation hostage? Answer: You could ask Mark Anastasi–he’s an expert on that subject. He’s put both parties in the judicial version of Darwin’s waiting room.
He never posts here–he doesn’t have to. His name comes up on a regular basis because he does what winners do: he makes others respond to him. Consequently, I nominate Mark Anastasi as OIB’s Superhero of the day.
Maybe because no one in his office did anything wrong. Manny got a new driveway paid by the city and build by himself. And the Airport Manager was fired and the Purchasing Director demoted so no one thinks it was just Finch and Wood paying back a donor.
So there is the subtle message, you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours for the right amount of scratch even if I have to fire or demoted people to make it happen.
The whores we have in charge of Bridgeport get paid and don’t have to stand on a corner, just okay a driveway.