Argyle councilman issues public apology after being sanctioned

An apology by a sanctioned council member was read at Tuesday’s Argyle Town Council meeting.

The council held a special meeting last week to discuss a complaint against Mayor Pro Tem Ronald Schmidt in executive session, which is closed to the public. After the three-hour private session, three council members voted to sanction Schmidt. Two council members — Schmidt and Marla Hawkesworth — abstained from voting. As a result of the sanctions, Schmidt may not participate in any council meetings until Sept. 25, he had to issue a public apology and he will no longer serve as the town’s mayor pro tem.

Mayor Don Moser read Schmidt’s apology, which said that during a break in the April 23 Town Council meeting, “I pointed my finger at a fellow council member and finished a sentence using the Lord’s name in vain.”

“Those actions did not meet my expectations of how I want interactions between council members to occur, and I apologize for those actions,” Schmidt’s letter continued. “While this event was regretful, my resolve and commitment to serve the citizens of Argyle is steadfast.”

Hawksworth said Schmidt’s apology was not good enough.

“I was very disappointed in his apology,” Hawkesworth said. “It was evident it was written as quickly and effortlessly as he could write it … there was no public apology to me at all.”

Hawkesworth also said she thinks the sanctions placed on Schmidt “were not nearly enough.”

“In my opinion, someone in a leadership role in a community of any size who cannot control their temper, there’s no place for them in a leadership role, certainly as a council member,” Hawkesworth said.