An article from The Sarasota Phoenix -- the local media outlet that exposes corruption and injustice in Sarasota government and politics.
Battie
BATTIE “ORCHESTRATED VILE ACCUSATION OF RACISM AGAINST FRANKLIN”
Kelly Franklin, who cares deeply and passionately about the noble cause of advancing equality and ending racism has been knocked backwards by the selfish acts of attention-seeking fraudsters and perpetrators of a hoax.
Franklin
Richard Harrison who Franklin has hired as her attorney against the fraudster and petpetrator of the hoax, Sarasota City Commissioner Kyle Battie states the race hoax perpetrated against Franklin, “Arrives courtesy of Kyle Battie, an African-American man who also happens to be an elected Sarasota City Commissioner."
Harrison
Harrison continues in his narrative, “Battie intentionally, knowingly, and maliciously planned and orchestrated a vile accusation of racism against a private citizen, Kelly Ann Franklin, a Caucasian woman, and then plotted to level his false charges in the most public, high-profile way available to him: from the dais of the Sarasota City Commission in a public meeting.”
BATTIE GUILTY OF INTENATIONAL MISCONDUCT OR GROSS NEGLIGENCE
Thus, Harrison has filed a lawsuit against Battie on behalf of Franklin stating that.....
Battie is Guilty of Intentional Misconduct or Gross Negligence. Battie is personally guilty of intentional misconduct, as defined in Fla. Stat. § 768.72(a), in that he had actual knowledge of the wrongfulness of his conduct and the high probability that injury or damage to Franklin would result, and despite that knowledge intentionally pursued the course of conduct described herein, resulting in injury or damage to Franklin.
Alternatively, Battie is personally guilty of gross negligence, as defined in Fla. Stat. § 768.72 (2)(b), in that his conduct was so reckless or wanting in care that it constituted a conscious disregard or indifference to the rights of Franklin.
Harrison's legal verbiage continues.....
Accordingly, Franklin reserves the right to seek leave to amend to add a claim for punitive damages against Battie in accordance with the provisions of Fla. Stat. § 768.72.
COUNT I – DEFAMATION
COUNT II – DEFAMATION PER SE
COUNT III – DEFAMATION BY IMPLICATION
COUNT IV - CONSPIRACY TO DEFAME
COUNT V – INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS.
HARRISON: "HOAXES LIKE BATTIE'S SMEAR INNOCENT PEOPLE AND MUCH MORE"
Harrison went on state, “Hoaxes accomplish is to smear innocent people, consume and divert important public resources to investigate nonexistent events, and garner fawning media attention for the narcissistic 'victims' and perpetrators of the hoaxes."
Harrison states, "By the time the hoax blows up under scrutiny, as it inevitably does, the damage has been done. But individual reputations, once tarnished, are not so easily repaired. And the work of those who genuinely care deeply and passionately about the noble cause of advancing equality and ending racism is knocked backwards by the selfish acts of attention-seeking frauds."
According to Harrison, “The purported post from Franklin’s personal Facebook that Battie published and discussed at length during the Commission meeting, as alleged It has never existed."
According to Harrison, "That racist connotation is precisely what Battie hoped and intended to convey when he published and discussed the Hoax Post in the context and as part and parcel of his lengthy speech about racism. The message Battie conveyed was clear: Franklin had made this racist post about Battie on her Facebook."
Remarkably, not a single person had reported actually seeing the Hoax Post on Franklin’s personal Facebook page at any time between September 22, 2023, the purported date of the Hoax Post, and January 16, 2024
Battie’s Intentional and Well-Orchestrated Attack
Harrison in filing the lawsuit representing Franklin against Battie writes, "Battie’s vicious personal attack on Franklin was not a spontaneous, heat of the moment response to what Battie genuinely perceived to be a racist post. To the contrary, this was an event that Battie plotted, planned, and coordinated for almost a month before delivering his scripted performance on January 16, 2024."
Harrison's time frame in Battie planning his attack on Franklin goes like this: 'Battie had received the Hoax Post from Tanya Borysiewicz on December 19, 2023. To be clear: by the end of the day on December 19, 2023, Battie had in his possession both the Hoax Post and Franklin’s original, actual, completely innocuous post with the identical text as was used in the Hoax.
On December 20, 2023, for reasons that are unknown to Franklin as of the date this Complaint is filed, Battie transferred certain photographs, including Franklin’s original gorilla photo gallery, from one of his phone numbers to another phone owned and controlled by him.
On January 2, 2024, the Commission held a regularly scheduled meeting. Battie made no mention of the Hoax Post or of anything related to it.
On or about January 10, 2024, Battie requested that two items be added to the agenda for the regularly scheduled January 16 Commission meeting. The first was a new business item relating to “Comprehensive Review of City of Sarasota Zoning Code.” The second was a new business item relating to “Civility, Respect and Rhetoric.”
Contrary to custom and standard operating procedure of the Commission, Battie did not furnish any supporting documents or other backup materials to the City Clerk to be included with the meeting agenda package for distribution to the City Commissioners with respect to either of these requested new agenda items. Battie then took steps to coordinate his planned attack on Franklin with his key “witness,” Borysiewicz.
Upon information and belief, Battie communicated with Borysiewicz concerning his plans for the January 16, 2024, Commission meeting. On January 15, 2024, Borysiewicz, who lives in Orlando, texted Battie that “I will be flying into Sarasota around 5:30. Do you want to get together to go over this situation?” She added, “I don’t want to turn up blind.”
Upon information and belief, Battie and Borysiewicz did in fact meet on the evening of January 15. At 6:21p.m. that evening, Battie texted Borysiewicz and stated “At Corona now.” .
Battie and Borysiewicz met in Sarasota to discuss the conspiracy and the events planned for January 16, 2024, including Borysiewicz’s participation in the Commission meeting.
Borysiewicz attended the Commission meeting on January16 and presented a false and incomplete version of events in support of Battie’s hoax Franklin. It depicted her name and displayed her photograph.
BATTIE AND BORYSIEWICZ HAD HOAX POST ON DECEMBER 1/19/2023
What neither Battie nor Borysiewicz told the City Commission was that they both had the Hoax Post as early as December 19, 2023, along with Franklin’s actual original post depicting the innocuous Franklin gorilla safari photographs.
BATTIE DOUBLING DOWN ON RACIST HOAX POST AGAINST FRANKLIN
Franklin filed the lawsuit, after a conversation about an apology, there was in fact no apology offered to Franklin. To the contrary, Battie doubled down and insisted that it was Franklin’s burden to prove that the Hoax Post was, in fact, a hoax.
Sarasota City Hall
How this totally irrational piece of Battie garbage called. “Unfinished Business: Civility, Respect, and Rhetoric discussion” got on the agenda without back up material to attack Franklin and the CityPAC organization is but another example of the Shit Show going on at City Hall.
Then Mayor Battie with Borysiewicz opening up her Corona Cigar Bar
BATTIE A CORONA CIGAR BAR FLUNKY WITH FREE DRINKS AND CIGARS AND ONLY GOD KNOWS WHAT ELSE
There is no doubt that Battie went on his over 30-minute rant attacking Franklin and member of the CityPAC organization to essentially attack Franklin and the CityPAC members for their opposition to the Corona Bar in Downtown Sarasota, which Battie happens to be a VIP member.
THE UNIPARTY'S THREE BRO'S-Arroyo/Brody/Battie
The LGBTQ political operatives-George Thurlow/Gabriel Hament/Ed James III
Battie is part of the local UNIPARTY made up of liberal Democrats and Republican RINO, whose campaigns are managed by LGBTQ political operatives and financed by the multimillion-dollar foundations.
Brody
Battie was handpicked by then Sarasota City Commissioner Hagen Brody to take out Sarasota City Commissioner Willie Shaw who voted against the white social elite multimillion-dollar Selby Garden projects heavily supported by UNIPARTY candidates.
Battie is no doubt the MOST unqualified Sarasota City Commissioner ever elected and it was just a matter of time before he made a complete fool of himself and the Sarasota City Commission, like he has in calling Franklin a racist.
Before running for City Commission, this UNIPARTY Battie had never been to one Coalition of City Neighborhood Association (CCNA) meeting, one local neighborhood meeting, never applied to serve on a City Advisory Board and only voted 11 times in 30 years. Battie never did one thing in the community other than help keep local bars in business.
Merrill
Battie became part oF the THREE BRO'S headed by Brody, which turned City Hall into a total SHIT SHOW controlled by Christine Robinson at the Argus Foundation and Attorney William Merrill III at the Icard Merrill law firm.
Robinson
Sarasota City Manager Marlon Brown sets the agenda and the City Commission on either a 3-2 or 4-1 vote whatever local "Pay to Play" developers like Merrill and Merrill's handpicked Executive Director Robinson at Argus desired to be passed.
Brown
Of course, Battie, who is constantly tutored by Sarasota City Manager Marlon Brown and ex Commissioner Brody always pushes that developer's button YES for projects Brown puts on the agenda.
BATTIE'S INFAMOUS CHRISTMAS EVE BRAWL
This is also not the first time that Battie has misused his title and the trappings of his public office as an elected City Commissioner in purely personal and private matters.
In the course of a now infamous Christmas Eve street brawl in 2020, according to the official Sarasota Police Department reports of the event, Battie spoke aggressively to the other party outside the Café Epicure before he was struck in the head and knocked unconscious, telling the other party that “I’m city council, I do what I want.”
Battie was drinking for hours in a bar on Palm Avenue with one of his friends, who had been in various drug and alcohol rehabs found himself in the gutter after threaten to f*** up a Sarasota resident according to SPD reports.
A SPD INVESTIGATION OF BATTIE AND HIS CRONIES IS A NECESSITY
Battie’s outrageous rant against respected neighborhood activists Franklin and members of CityPAC, which has turned into despicable hoax needs a City of Sarasota Police Department investigation.
An SPD investigation is a necessity being that evidence now shows that Battie and his friends at the Corona Cigar Bar involved in this hoax, which has divided Sarasota knew a month before Battie put together his well-orchestrated race card rant that it was a phony. No other rational person could possibly believe this photo was not a phony other than Battie or his cronies.
BATTIE LOOKING FOR A "HOME COOKED" JUDICIAL DECISION
Bentley
No other rational person includes Battie's attorney Brian Goodrich, who works for the notorious UNIPARTY attorney Morgan Benley. Makes no difference due to judicial decisions are won by Bentley due to being "Pay to Play " developer Pat Neal's local "mob attorney."
It is no secret in this Neal corrupted 12th Judcial Circuit that Bentley gets favorable decisions from Neal's appointed corrupt judges. Battie is hopping Bentley gets one of those "home cooked" judicial decisions
Battie now joins a Neal political operative convicted of political fraud (Waechter) and a 68 CONVICTED felon (Michael Barfield) as a Bentley client.
Jon Susce
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