During a special Corning town meeting this week, the town supervisor and two present council members skipped a planned executive session. They then passed a resolution to approve payment for an unknown legal matter before abruptly ending the meeting, leaving residents confused and frustrated.
Corning Town Supervisor Jennifer Mullen did not provide a reason for skipping the executive session.
The resolution approved payment from the New York Municipal Insurance Repository (NYMIR) and authorized NYMIR to invoice the town for the payment.
Supervisor Mullen and Deputy Supervisor Stuart Sammis closed the meeting and exited the room while attendees demanded answers about what the town agreed to pay for—and how much.
Both Mullen and Sammis told attendees there would be no discussion because it was a confidential matter. They instructed anyone who wanted more information to file a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request for the documents. The Freedom of Information Law allows any member of the public to request access to public government records.
Distrust amongst town residents comes amidst the backdrop of legal issues for Mullen.
Last month, she was charged with three felonies—including grand larceny. She is alleged to have provided false information to the New York State Department of Labor to file for unemployment benefits. As a result of this alleged transaction, Mullen received more than $1,000 in benefits that she was not entitled to. As of this report, the case is still pending.
Mullen is also named in a legal complaint filed by a town employee.
It remains unclear what legal matter the town agreed to pay for, however, Council Member Lon Fiscus assured the public after the special town board meeting that the town was not paying for Mullen’s personal legal matters.
Fiscus explained that the executive session was not necessary because prior to the public meeting, he said: “We discussed it individually but didn’t approve anything.”
Fiscus also told the public attendees that the discussion was an email forwarding a legal document from a judge and a question of whether or not the town needed to have an executive session. According to Fiscus, that answer was no.
It is not clear who the emails were from and whether council members were speaking directly to legal counsel.
According to New York’s Open Meetings Law, public business is to be performed in an open and public manner, including executive sessions. Emails cannot replace public deliberations. They cannot be used by the municipality’s public body to take action or a vote.
Mullen was defeated by her challenger, Justin Eberlin, in the Republican primary for the District 13 Steuben County legislator seat. District 13 covers the towns of Corning, Caton and Hornby.
