Brookside Park Litigation Update: TRO Quashed; Ousted Board Definitively Removed; New Elections Scheduled
As many of you know, following the Special Meeting and Board Elections called on April 23 2023 by Brookside Unit Owners for Change, the elected Board of Directors took over control of the Association (financial accounts, office space, oversight of contracts, etc.) We did so working hand-in-hand with the Managing Agent for Brookside (MEINC/Blanche Thompson) and the Bookkeeper (Carmen Cecilia Crespo, or CC).
The ousted Board, under the leadership of Leonard Lucas, filed an emergency Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) in Prince George's County Circuit Court. The TRO listed as defendants Heath Bourne and Robert Haddad, who were elected to the new Board, and David Gilmore, unit owner and former Managing Agent of Brookside (and not a Board member). The TRO did not target the other elected Board members, namely Kesha Neamo, Renee Williams or Annie James. The TRO restrained the defendants from any Board activity until the hearing scheduled at 1:30 PM Tuesday May 30, 2023.
At the hearing, Mr. Lucas was first to testify. Defendants (Heath Bourne and Robert Haddad) had the following witness pool: Karen Straughn (OAG), Sherman Topping (former Managing Agent for Brookside), Clayton Toppin (former EcoVBio contractor for Brookside), David Gilmore (former Managing Agent for Brookside), Carmen ("CC") Crespo (Bookkeeper for Brookside) and Kevin McAfee (current Managing Agent for Brookside). By the time the testimony of Mr. Lucas was concluded, the Judge called an end to further testimony and proposed a path forward. We accepted this proposed solution.
Consent Decree
We (Heath Bourne, Robert Haddad and David Gilmore) agreed to enter into a Consent Decree that stipulated the following, pursuant to Judge Snoddy's Order:
1. The Ousted Board (i.e. Lucas, Warner, Judge and any other of their appointees) are out. They can no longer represent themselves to be the Brookside Board of Directors.
2. The Board of Directors elected on April 23, 2023 (i.e. Haddad, Williams, Bourne, Neamo and James) is also out. We can no longer represent ourselves to be the Board of Directors.
3. MEINC will become the Receiver for Brookside for a period of up to 45 days, to run the day-to-day affairs of the Association, ensure all invoices are paid, ensure continuity of services to the community, and organize & run an upcoming Special Meeting and Board election.
4. CC (Crespo Accounting) will work with the community and with MEINC to produce and certify eligible voters consistent with our by-laws and the Maryland Condominium Act (MCA).
5. A new Special Meeting and Board election is mandated to occur on July 10, 2023 at which point a new Board will be installed. [The Court-appointed Receiver, MEINC, changed the date of the election to July 19, 2023].
6. Karen Straughn of the OAG will oversee the election process and mediate any issues of contention between parties.
Is this a Good Outcome for Brookside?
Absolutely! We believe this is a good outcome for Brookside. Of course, we would have preferred that Judge Snoddy ratify the April 23 proceedings, however, we recognize that the priority was then, and remains today, to have fair, open and regular elections. That is what we sought all along--in 2021, 2022 or 2023. That is why we collected 197 petitions demanding the removal of the entire Board and calling for new elections. That is why Heath Bourne and Robert Haddad filed suit in Circuit Court in December 2022. Lucas and the former Board have now been definitively removed, serving notice to that Board (and any future Boards) that holding regular elections is mandated by our by-laws and the MCA, and that our community will hold that Board (and any future Boards) accountable for the fiduciary responsibility we have entrusted them with.
Next Steps
Under the aegis of our Managing Agent, MEINC, our community will hold another election on July 19, 2023. This is a small inconvenience for Brookside to hold another election only weeks after having conducted one. On the other side, we have not had elections in 4 years, so perhaps it is not such a bad thing to have two back-to-back elections in 2023. We expect to hear from MEINC about the process for the upcoming elections. We look forward to your continued support in this next phase of rebuilding Brookside Park with competency, integrity and transparency.
Thank you
We would like to extend a sincere thank you to those members of the Brookside community who came to Court Tuesday May 30, 2023 to witness the proceedings and lend their support. This proceeding was long coming. It took a tremendous level of effort and commitment to get to this point, including months of effort collecting Petitions for removal; weeks of campaigning and electioneering, dozens of community-wide communications, Zooms and email campaigns. Thank you to those who took time out of their day to come to Upper Marlboro and show your support.
It is not lost on us that, while Heath Bourne and Robert Haddad spent their time and money prosecuting this case, the ousted Board (Lucas, Judge, Warner and any of their appointees) used Association funds, i.e. your money, and a multitude of lawyers to prevent an election at every turn. This will warrant further scrutiny, regardless who ends up on the Brookside Board.
Full text of the Court Order can be found here.