FLINT, Mich. (WNEM) – At 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, the Flint City Council will be in breach of the city charter after failing to achieve a quorum, once again, during a special meeting Tuesday night.

It was inside the commission chamber at the Genesee County Administration Building.

The council was meeting to appoint a new Third Ward Councilman to the position after the death of Councilman Quincy Murphy.

“Once the quorum has been broken and now the charter has been violated, that means the Ethics and Accountability Board gets involved, because we are responsible for ensuring that the charter is followed,” said William Harris, vice president of the City of Flint Ethics and Accountability Board.

The quorum was broken after Councilman Jonathan Jarrett of District 9 left the meeting due to what was said to be a prior commitment. Councilman Dennis Pfeifer, Ward 8, was absent from the meeting. Council members Jerri Winfrey-Carter of District 5 and Tonya Burns of District 6 cited safety concerns as one of the reasons they did not attend.

“That security plan that was issued is at best vague in its content. It’s very vague in its content and I’m not, I don’t feel safe,” Burns said.

Burns refers to a security plan between council and police, but said it only applies to City Hall and not the Administration Building, where the meeting took place.

“All we did was add a few more measures to the public safety request that they wanted us to implement,” said Councilwoman Candice Mushatt, Ward 7. “There is a plan and we worked with the Flint Police Department, also with our district attorney. the city, so we hope that’s the encouragement our colleagues need to come forward.

The issue will now go before the Ethics and Accountability Board, which will hold a special meeting on Friday. Members are expected to discuss the council’s next steps.

“To stay in them and make sure that, hey, you need to name. They need to be named, whether it’s through a special letter, calling them, having a special hearing, a formal hearing, an informal hearing, whether it’s sending letters and things of that nature, it’s our job to hold them accountable. Harris said.

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