Attorney to file federal civil rights suit against Trumbull County officials in Frenchko arrest

Attorney David Betras of the law firm Betras, Kopp and Markota told 21 News that he will be representing Trumbull County Commissioner Nicki Frenchko against the misdemeanor charges that she disrupted Thursday, July 7 commissioner meeting and that he will be filing a federal civil rights lawsuit against the Trumbull County officials responsible for her arrest.

During the Trumbull County Commissioner Meeting on July 7, Frenchko was led out of the board room, placed in handcuffs, and charged with the Fourth-Degree misdemeanor, after Frenchko made comments while the Commissioners clerk Paula Vivoda-Klotz read aloud a letter submitted into the official record from Trumbull County Sheriff Paul Monroe. Frenchko was arrested by Trumbull County Sheriff's Department and was booked and charged with disturbing a lawful meeting.

The letter from the Sheriff was written in response to a letter Frenchko read during the June 1 commissioner meeting regarding the alleged medical care for an inmate at the Trumbull County jail. In the letter, the sheriff also demanded an apology. Board president Frank Fuda had the clerk of the Board read the letter publicly.

“What we witnessed yesterday in Warren, Ohio was a scene out of Russia and other dictatorships where despots like Vladimir Putin and Syria’s Bashar al-Assad routinely arrest and jail their political opponents,” Atty. Betras said. “I never thought I would see anything like this in the United States, but there it was, live on Facebook, an elected official arrested and silenced by her political enemies for exercising her First Amendment rights. It was truly chilling,” Betras added.

Betras said he is preparing to file a federal civil rights suit against the county officials that were involved in the incident.

“Section 1983 of the U.S. Code enables individuals to sue government officials who use the legal system to deprive them of their constitutional rights,” Betras said. “I believe that is exactly what took place during the meeting, and I intend to hold those responsible accountable for their actions. We can and we must send a loud and clear message that political oppression is not acceptable in the United States.”

A written not guilty plea was submitted to Warren Municipal Court Friday by Bertras.

“Whether Frank Fuda, Mauro Cantalamessa, or Paul Monroe like it or not, Commissioner Frenchko was duly elected by the people of Trumbull County,” Atty. Betras said. “When they oppress her, they are oppressing them which, in turn, undermines our democracy. The notion that she owes anyone an apology for doing her job by raising legitimate questions about conditions in the jail is ludicrous,” Bertras added.