MILTON, Ga. — A Milton official’s months-long court battle has finally come to a close, after the Georgia Court of Appeals denied an appeal to reverse his ethics charges July 13.
Last August, Milton City Councilman Paul Moore was found guilty of three ethics violations after he voted to defer an item related to traffic calming devices installed by his own homeowners association in the White Columns neighborhood.
Moore’s petition to the Fulton County Superior Court stated the three-member Milton Ethics Panel ruled in error. The panel and the Milton City Council were named in the case.
He also sought reimbursement from Tony Palazzo, the defendant in the appeal, for attorney fees spent during the panel investigation. Palazzo, the White Columns Community Association president, filed the ethics complaint.
While Palazzo has spent $30,000 throughout the litigation process, Moore says he has spent $100,000. That figure could increase with Palazzo’s recent appeal to seek reimbursement from Moore for fees incurred throughout the litigation, which began in November. Doug Chalmers, Moore’s attorney, filed an opposition to Palazzo’s appeal July 14.
“The ethics charges that were against me were because I supposedly made a decision about an instance that would affect the value of my home,” Moore said in an interview with Appen Media July 20. “Everything we decide, as an elected official, has an impact on the value of all the homes in our community. We’re serving the best interests of the community, right?”
In May, the Fulton County Superior Court denied Moore’s appeal based on what he calls a “technicality.”
The court ruled Moore did not file legal action within the state’s required time period, based on their finding that the Milton City Council’s final determination was not a “quasi-judicial” process.
The Georgia Court…
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