AS CITY INITIATES SEARCH FOR CITY ATTORNEY, EMPTY SLOTS

By Juan Montoya

Since July 15, 2009, the City of Brownsville's legal direction had been set by just-terminated attorney Mark Sossi.
Up to January 17, he was under contract with the city for a $10,000 a month retainer and another $5,000 a month contract with the Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation. On that day, he pleaded and convinced the commissioners to make him a full-time employee so he could provide medical insurance for a child in a custody battle with a former lover.

Moved, the commissioners complied assured by Sossi that he would work exclusively for the city and no one else. Unbeknownst to them, less than a month layer – on February 14 – Sossi inked a retainer contract with the City of Mission  to advise them at $2,500 a month.

Then, less than seven months after he became a city employee, a majority of the city commission (5-2) voted to terminate his services as city attorney. Now, the GBIC will consider ending their contract with Sossi in their upcoming meeting which was cancelled this month.

The city plans to soon advertise to hire another attorney but have not decided whether it will be on a contract basis or as a full-time employee.

Mayor Tony Martinez and Commissioners Tetreau, Ben Neece, Cesar De Leon and Rose Gowen voted to end Sossi’s employment. Commissioners Ricardo Longoria and Joel Munguia voted against it.

Meanwhile, Timothy Sampeck, a member of the city's legal department, is serving as the interim city attorney.

City commissioners had some talking points for replacing Sossi – whose list of peccadilloes and outright crimes would fill several tomes –  and these were mouthed by commissioner Jessica Tetreau who made the motion to terminate him.

She told the local daily was in the process of structuring its legal department and felt it was time to reevaluate because of the way the city has grown.

Neece, who seconded Tetreau's motion to terminate Sossi also told the daily that: “The city charter provides that the city commission hires and fires the city attorney and the city manager. Everybody else is hired and fired by the city manager. He also appoints city judges, but they have terms so he can’t fire a city judge but he cannot reappoint them at the end of the term.”

Munguia also told the Herald that he voted against Sossi’s termination because he hasn’t been on the commission for long enough time to make a proper evaluation. He was elected to the commission in May.

“It’s only been three months, (and) I didn’t feel like it was enough time for me personally to make a proper evaluation,” Munguia said.

That didn't sit well with some of our seven readers who said that the facts out in public about ethically-challenged Sossi were out there for anyone to see.

"Munguia isn't a child. If he ran for the position he has, it's supposed to be to help the citizens . He knows Sossi is corrupt; plenty of stories written about him and his unethical shenanigans . Mungia wimped out. Period. When he was campaigning , he never said he would need "time"; When it came to voting on issues, he punked out."