YAKIMA — A Yakima County Judge has dismissed a defamation suit filed against the city of Union Gap and its mayor by one of its councilmembers.
Councilwoman Julie Schilling sued Mayor Roger Wentz and the city in 2016, alleging Wentz’s proposal earlier in the year to censure her and another councilman was done maliciously.
The Yakima Herald-Republic reports that Schilling’s attorney, James Perkins, said Wentz knew his statements were intended to “defame two people falsely.”
But Superior Court Judge Michael McCarthy said in court Wednesday that Wentz’s move to censure Schilling and Councilman Dan Olson was completely within his rights as the city’s mayor.
Wentz had accused them of violating the state’s open meetings law but he later dropped an effort to censure them before the council could vote.
