DeBary’s mayor may be out of a job by the end of Wednesday as a special meeting will decide whether Clint Johnson should be removed from office.

  • Clint Johnson is accused of giving orders to city employees
  • Some thought Johnson's tweet about fighting for city's "sanctity" was a call to riot
  • Interim city manager originally wanted to have a close-door meeting due to fear of possible riot
  • Meeting will be opened to the public

Johnson has been accused of sending text messages and tweets to give orders to city employees, even dictating the removal of a staff member.

“This council, looking at a text message and an email for six months and can’t make up their mind is to me, gross incompetence and it has nothing but disrupt and make this city in turmoil,” said Johnson.

But Ron McLemore, the interim city manager, said the mayor cannot order city staff around and certainly cannot fire them. That’s his job.

“This hearing is all about the violation of the charter,” said McLemore.

If the city council determines Johnson violated the city charter, he can be fired.

“Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been wasted on frivolously legal attempts by this council to disrespect the first amendment,” said Johnson.

In addition, it was questionable social media posts which first got the mayor in trouble, and now social media posts led to the interim city manager’s initial decision to close Wednesday’s meeting to the general public.

McLemore said Johnson's most recent, questionable posts were perceived as inciting a riot and called for the meeting to be closed to the general public.

Johnson said McLemore’s attempt to close the meeting was to protect a small number of people by depriving 19,000 residents of their freedom of speech and ability to attend Wednesday’s meeting under one roof. That move is a violation of the Sunshine Law, Johnson said.

“When we wrote the initial document, no, we did not feel like we were violating the Sunshine Law,” said McLemore.

Despite that, McLemore decided to have an open meeting for everyone.

On Tuesday, a letter surfaced in which the mayor mocks McLemore’s initial decision of having a closed meeting, writing that Pope Francis was also perceived as inciting riots and violence. McLemore said the letter is an insult to the Catholic Church.

McLemore is now calling for increased security, claiming residents fear possible violence during the meeting.

“The feedback we’ve gotten from the community suggest that a lot of people from the community are intimidated by the rhetoric of the mayor,” added McLemore.

Johnson said the claim that he is inciting violence is being blown out of proportion by the interim city manager.

“And if he knew the residents like I know the residents, he knows that they’re not the type that would be violent and come out and protest inappropriately,” said Johnson.

Howard Niman voted for Johnson to become DeBary’s youngest mayor.

The Navy veteran has a colorful way of describing Johnson after his first couple of years in office.

“I refer to him as our local Trump here in DeBary. Well, usually when he opens his mouth he gets in trouble,” said Niman.