ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — What was supposed to be a Special Board Meeting in the city of Pine Lawn on Thursday turned explosive, resulting in no action at all.
Some neighbors are trying to get rid of Mayor Terry Epps, claiming he's not being transparent or responding to their concerns. Five On Your Side was the only news crew there as police had to be called to the scene.
A group of neighbors say they're fed up. They’ve caught the attention of some aldermen, who all gathered at City Hall on Thursday with hopes of bringing in outside counsel to begin the process of removing the mayor. But that didn't happen due to guidelines on how meetings are to be advertised.
When a neighbor tried to break up the meeting in a tense exchange with residents, police were called to the scene to make sure things didn’t escalate further.
Certain aldermen were planning to hire an attorney - separate from the city attorney - to oust Epps. When they tried to go into executive session to do it, the city attorney told them the meeting does not follow protocol because a notice wasn't posted and advertised for 24 hours.
"He is not representing us. He's representing the Mayor… This is another tactic to keep us from meeting and doing what we need to do,” said Rosetta Hamilton-Griffin with the Pine Lawn Citizen’s Organization.
Neighbors said they want more transparency and improved city services.
"He doesn't give us invoices on anything,” Hamilton-Griffin continued.
"We got trees hanging on wires. They will not come and cut it,” an unidentified resident added.
They said a city audit hasn't been conducted in years, leading them to question the state of the city's finances.
"We’re here because we don't like the confusion. We want to go forth and get this city where it needs to be,” the resident added.
"The city is great under my leadership," Epps told 5 On Your Side. "We’re working hard to keep the city going and doing good. We’re trying to take care of the residents…My fight to continue to improve our community is going to keep going. I don't have time to focus on the negativity that goes on. My focus is on building and uplifting this community."
The mayor has been in office for nearly eight years and said the people elected him four separate times.
However, those neighbors who want him gone say their fight isn't over. They said they were getting with their aldermen to re-advertise their intentions and move forward.