PALM BAY, Fla. – The attorney for Palm Bay Councilman Chandler Langevin is threatening legal action after a measure to strip away some of Langevin’s power was added to the city council agenda.
On Thursday, the council will vote on a resolution to censure Langevin for conduct unbecoming of an elected member and for improperly using city letterhead.
The vote is scheduled to happen two weeks after the council voted 4-1 to ask Gov. Ron DeSantis to suspend Langevin over social media posts disparaging Indian immigrants.
[VIDEO: Palm Bay council pushes to suspend councilman over Indian immigration critiques]
According to the resolution, the censure would also prevent Langevin from placing an item on the agenda, he would not be permitted to provide council reports, and he could not serve on any boards or committees.
Anthony Sabatini, who represents Langevin, said the discipline would be a violation of First Amendment rights.
“The government cannot punish and limit your rights just purely based on your viewpoint,” Sabatini said. “You can pass a censure motion, that’s fine, but you can’t limit his ability to speak based on his opinion.”
[VIDEO: ’I will not apologize;’ Palm Bay councilman defies calls to step down over comments about immigrants]
Sabatini said he’s considering a lawsuit against the city if the council moves forward with disciplinary action.
“To punish him unlawfully, you get a result of a lawsuit, and they’re going to pay his attorney fees,” Sabatini said. “Under the statute, when he wins, they’re going to have to pay his attorney fees for violating his First Amendment rights to free speech.”
Langevin also responded to the censure resolution in a post on X:
“This is clearly a violation of the law and slap in the face to the voters who elected me to carry out an agenda to reverse the decline in Palm Bay,” the post stated.
“If the council is dumb enough to vote for this there will be immediate law suits against the city.”
[VIDEO: Palm Bay councilman’s social media post about Indian immigrants prompts suspension call]
The council is expected to discuss the censure resolution during its meeting on Thursday at 6 p.m.