LANSING — Want to know what, exactly, took place during a closed session last November when the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners reportedly approved a $4 million deal to make their health officer resign?

Residents are inching closer to having that information made public, as the Michigan Court of Appeals granted today a motion filed in February by The Holland Sentinel to unseal testimony from Clerk Justin Roebuck on what the conversation entailed.

Read More: Sentinel asks judge to unseal testimony, transcript from Hambley evidentiary hearing

Fourteenth Circuit Court Judge Jenny McNeill denied The Sentinel's motion on Feb. 28 to unseal the transcript of an evidentiary hearing Jan. 19 that she closed to the public and media.

Roebuck was subpoenaed to testify in that hearing, part of a lawsuit filed by Health Officer Adeline Hambley in February 2023.

Hambley claimed an attempt to demote her in January 2023 was unlawful and alleged the Ottawa Impact majority — a far-right fundamentalist group that assumed a board majority at the beginning of last year — repeatedly interfered with her state-authorized health duties.

Despite Hambley settling her lawsuit with the county on Feb. 26 of this year — with her remaining in her job and the county paying for her $188,000 in legal fees — details of the closed session discussing the failed $4 million agreement have never been made public by the board or the courts.

This reporter, a former Sentinel employee, reported the $4 million settlement and helped file paper’s lawsuit in February to unseal Roebuck’s testimony as to what commissioners discussed during the fateful Nov. 6 hearing.

Sentinel granted leave to appeal 11.08.241.35MB ∙ PDF fileDownloadRead the order from the Michigan Court of Appeals.Download

Details of the agreement, which were confirmed by Hambley’s attorney and multiple commissioners not in the Ottawa Impact majority on the board, included paying Hambley a total of $4 million to step down, plus the resignation of Deputy Health Officer Marcia Mansaray.

Joseph Richotte, attorney for The Sentinel, wrote in a filing Feb. 7 that McNeill erred when she closed the courtroom.

"Courtroom[s] cannot be closed and records cannot be sealed except on a written motion showing that a party’s protectable interest outweighs the public’s right of access," Richotte wrote.

Read More: Sentinel asks judge to unseal testimony, transcript from Hambley evidentiary hearing

McNeill closed the courtroom Jan. 19 after county attorney David Kallman sought to keep testimony by Roebuck and Commissioners Moss, Jacob Bonnema, Roger Bergman and Doug Zylstra private — arguing it was inappropriate for the public and media to be privy to discussions that took place during a closed session. In the end, only Roebuck testified.

McNeill said she "struggled" with the decision, but concluded she "had no other choice" in order to keep potentially sensitive information private.

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On Friday, the Court of Appeals said the leave to appeal was granted, meaning the county’s corporation counsel and Sentinel’s legal council must now submit briefs to the court, which likely will lead to a future hearing.

In that Jan. 19 hearing, McNeill also found that although a $4 million settlement agreement was discussed Nov. 6 between the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners and Hambley, the public vote afterward wasn't clear enough make the agreement legally binding.

Hambley remains in the role as of publication and Mansaray retired in May to pursue an unsuccessful bid for the Michigan House of Representatives.

— Contact Sarah Leach at SentinelLeach@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter @SentinelLeach. Subscribe to her content at sentinelleach.substack.com.