It’s time for Fort Worth suburb to heal, mayor says, after legal settlement reached
Councilman Ronald Schmidt and the town of Argyle agreed to mend fences and settle a federal lawsuit after months of political turmoil.
During a specially-called meeting Monday, council members voted 3-1 to settle the suit and agreed that Argyle would pay Schmidt $30,000 in attorney’s fees. Argyle will pay $5,000, and the rest of the money will come from the city’s insurance policy with the Texas Municipal League.
The settlement also stated that the small Denton County town was wrong to sanction Schmidt from fulfilling his duties as an elected official which was the basis for the lawsuit.
Frank Hill, an attorney representing Schmidt, said “It’s not just a good thing for our client but also for the Argyle Town Council. Everyone realized that they needed to correct the constitutional error.”
After the council voted to accept the agreement, Mayor Donald Moser read a statement saying that even before Schmidt sued the city, he and his family were harassed online, at the grocery store and in church for his stance on maintaining the rural atmosphere in Argyle.
“My fervent hope is that all factions in this town can come together and put away negative speak, negative desires and negative comments and get back to the work of the people,” he said.
In his suit, which was filed in September, Schmidt alleged that his constitutional rights were violated when the city council voted to sanction him from attending meetings, and that he was prevented from representing his constituents.
Schmidt alleged that other council members wanted to silence him for his protests about development that went against his promises to keep Argyle’s rural lifestyle.
This story was originally published January 22, 2020 at 2:00 PM.