Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot Blocks City Deal, Lawsuit Alleges
Chicago Tribune.Smryniotis alleges in the suit that the district’s top attorney, Timothy King, and then-superintendent Michael Kelly told Smryniotis that they had wanted another suit by the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans against the Park District after Lightfoot removed Columbus statues from Chicago to be settled “as soon as possible.”He says he then negotiated with the Italian American group’s lawyers to reach a deal.
They eventually made an agreement to have a statue featured at the annual Columbus parade last fall.King approved it, hoping to make good with the Italian Americans, the Tribune reports.
They also began talks about removing the statue permanently.The lawsuit alleges that when Lightfoot heard of the plan, she said she would cancel the parade’s permit, and she ordered an immediate Zoom call.On that call, Smyrniotis says that Lightfoot “proceeded to berate and defame” the lawyers and questioned their credentials.Lightfoot told them “not to do a f****** thing with that statute without my approval.”“Get that f****** statue back before noon tomorrow or I am going to have you fired,” Lightfoot also said, according to the suit.She is also accused of making obscene comments to Smyrniotis and King.“You make some kind of secret agreement with Italians. ...
You are out there stroking your dicks over the Columbus statue, I am trying to keep Chicago police officers from being shot and you are trying to get them shot,” Lightfoot allegedly said. “My dick is bigger than yours and the Italians, I have the biggest dick in Chicago.”Smyrniotis says the comments defamed him by claiming he couldn’t do his job, according to the Tribune.
