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EAST LIVERPOOL -- A decision to deny the motion filed by the City of East Liverpool on May 8 to strike portions of Christopher Green's First Amendment complaint was handed down by United States District Court Judge John R. Adams Aug. 1.
Adams denied the motion without prejudice and noted the court will revisit the issue if necessary at the next case management conference scheduled for Oct. 5.
East Liverpool, one of the named defendants in a lawsuit filed by Green, a former East Liverpool police officer, filed the motion to request statements they considered to be unnecessary, unrelated and scandalous be stricken from Green's complaint.
The city alleged that the statements made by Green did not identify the allegations as a basis for the claim and requested that other statements made regarding allegations against city police officers and alleged illicit behavior by the officers be removed as well.
Green's attorneys filed a motion to oppose the statements being removed from the complaint on May 22.
Green requested a jury trial for the lawsuit he initiated in which he says he was wrongfully terminated as retaliation for reporting alleged misconduct of fellow officers to the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) which he claims violated his First Amendment Rights on March 8.
Another motion filed on Sept. 14 for a substitution of counsel was approved by Adams.
Attorney Scott Coghlan of Zashin & Rich Co., the firm representing defendants, The City of East Liverpool, Gregory Bricker, David Dawson, Fred Flati, Darin Morgan and Chad Tatgenhorst, filed the motion requesting he be added as additional counsel for the defendants moving forward to replace Attorney Katherine J. Mills who will be leaving the firm.