The mayor of an Alabama city was arrested Friday and the police chief taken to the hospital after a fight over shutting down parts of the city, Fox6 News reported.
On Friday morning, Mayor Lance McDade sent letters to employees of Lipscomb, putting them on administrative leave with pay. McDade told Fox6 reporter Melanie Posey he planned the leave until he and the council could learn to work together better.
At the same time, the city council held a meeting, planning to speak with McDade about his recent decision to get rid of the city clerk. McDade objected, saying the meeting was illegal because there was not proper notice, a claim the council has rejected.
Then the council decided to change the locks on McDade’s office door, saying the move was an attempt to keep the mayor from disrupting the council’s daily business.
Police Chief Warren Carey arrived at the scene, and asked the mayor to leave his office while the locks were being changed.
A scuffle followed, according to Fox6 News, and McDade was arrested on charges he did not follow police orders. Carey injured his leg, and was taken to a hospital for treatment.
McDade told Fox6 from his jail cell that he was enacting the paid leave because of the chaos and a lack of order in the city. But city employees and council members said the mayor’s poor attitude toward business and government staffers led to the move.
Mayor McDade and his wife were arrested last year during a domestic dispute. The mayor also was arrested in 2013 at the scene of a fire.
It was unclear Sunday when the mayor was expected to be released from jail and be back at work. Mayor pro tem Brenda Renz is expected to lead the city until McDade returns.
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