Members of public demand resignation of St. Pete Council Chair Gabbard, member Floyd

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Members of the public are calling for the resignation of City Council Chair Brandi Gabbard and City Council member Richie Floyd for “violating the city’s charter,” in regard to comments they made amid a recent investigation into the behavior of St. Pete Fire Chief James Large.

Large, who has since been reinstated last month, was reportedly under investigation in August for allegations of “bullying and discrimination.”

Floyd and Gabbard publicly spoke out demanding new leadership on different occasions, which was a violation of the city’s charter, according to Large’s attorney, Jay Hebert of Hebert Law Group.

Hebert told Florida’s Voice that a “clear violation of the city charter did occur, and occurred at his [Large’s] expense.”

“He’s going to move forward and let the political process sort itself out. He certainly would be entitled to an apology, but that’s that’s up to the individual council members who violated the charter,” Hebert said.

Members of the public demanded the resignation of Gabbard and Floyd during open forum at the Sept. 7 city council meeting.

Pinellas County Commission candidate Vincent Nowicki said he filed an ethics complaint with the Commission on Ethics in the state of Florida for violation of the charter.

“I call on this body to take action because it says any violation of that charter shall be grounds for removal of office,” Nowicki said during public comment.

St. Petersburg resident Caitlin New said she believes Floyd and Gabbard should resign.

“If they don’t resign, I ask this council to uphold the oath you took when you were sworn in and begin the process of removing them from office – per the charter,” New said.

“Don’t let this arrogance stand,” New continued. “No one is above the law.”

At a press conference in August, Hebert said they were concerned about some “political motivations.” 

According to the city charter Section 4.05, neither the council nor any of its members may publicly/privately, directly or indirectly, direct/request the appointment or removal of any employee of the city to/from any position with the city by the mayor, or by any of the mayor’s subordinates.

The charter states “a violation of the provisions of this section by a member of the Council shall be grounds for removal from office.”

Gabbard admitted to knowingly violating the city’s charter in a Tampa Bay Times article on Aug. 3 titled, “St. Petersburg council chairperson wants embattled fire chief out.”

“Gabbard said she has ‘not been quiet’ about her interactions with Large internally, but said she refrained from commenting publicly previously because the City Charter bars council members from interfering with employee relations,” the article said.

In a statement given to the Times, Gabbard she has “always been met with disrespect, bullying, and attempts at intimidation” by Chief Large. That statement was sent via Gabbard’s aide, Kimberly Amos. 

“It is time for a new day and new leadership that supports and protects those who protect us,” Gabbard’s statement continued.

Floyd is also being asked to step down by members of the public due to his comments on social media.

“Im grateful for Chief Large’s faithful service to our city, but nothing is more important than dignity on the job. […] It’s for this reason that I believe it’s time for a change in leadership, & our Fire department employees should have the first say in who their next leader is,” Floyd said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

During public comment, resident Mary Kovacs said Gabbard and Floyd should take a leave of absence and be investigated.

“Are you going to take a leave of absence? Because you’ve broken the charter? Should we investigate and take time, just like we did for Jim Large, who’s been in service since 2006,” Kovacs said.

Kovacs said she is “very worried” about the influence they [Gabbard, Floyd] have in city politics and on staff.

St. Petersburg resident Laura Hartman said she is “concerned” they will “do this again” and is fearful that they will “continue to overstep authority moving forward.”

“You’ve demonstrated your lack of awareness. You’ve demonstrated to the taxpayers that you don’t know the role that you’re here for,” Hartman continued.

Floridas’ Voice individually reached out to Gabbard, Floyd, Mayor Ken Welch, and Public Information Officer Erica Riggins, but did not hear back.