A Miami-Dade County judge has thrown out a lawsuit from an embattled Palmetto Bay councilman against his own vice mayor — one that could local taxpayers thousands of dollars in legal expenses.
Judge Jacqueline Woodward recently dismissed a complaint brought by Palmetto Bay Councilman Stephen Cody. He claimed Vice Mayor Mark Merwitzer was improperly sworn into office when he was elected in 2024, and therefore any action Merwitzer has taken as an elected official over the past year should be nullified.
In her dismissal, Woodward said the controversy Cody alleged existed “only in Plaintiff’s own mind” and not in “law or fact.”
“This action is dismissed with prejudice at the pleading stage because it is based on a wholly fabricated controversy lacking any factual or legal foundation,” Woodward wrote.
Cody could not immediately be reached for comment.
READ MORE: Village Council drama leaves Palmetto Bay residents paying thousands of dollars
Merwitzer sought legal counsel to defend himself in the case and, by law, he is entitled to reimbursement from the Village for his attorneys fees — which he estimates at upwards of $50,000.
Merwitzer told WLRN he is seeking a legal opinion to see if he can require Cody to pay the bill so as not to burden taxpayers.
“ This isn't about punishing Mr. Cody or anything like that. To me, it's about making sure our taxpayers are made whole for the damages that were caused here,” he said.
Merwitzer characterized the entire lawsuit as a waste of taxpayer dollars, as the Village Council had already paid an outside law firm $6,000 to investigate if the Vice Mayor was properly sworn in, and that firm concluded that he was.
WLRN previously reported that Cody’s campaign against Merwitzer, which included cartoon parody images of the vice mayor, began after Merwitzer rescinded a contract with a lobbyist Cody had ties to.
”My feeling towards it is just utter disappointment because this is something that could have been prevented. Once the attorney said there's nothing here, that should have been it,” he said.
Cody's controversial Facebook post
Cody is no stranger to controversy.
Last September, Cody drew national media attention when village residents called for his removal for his Facebook comments following the death of right-wing media personality Charlie Kirk.
"Charlie Kirk is a fitting sacrifice to our Lords: Smith & Wesson. Hallowed be their names," Cody wrote, referring to the U.S. gun manufacturer.
Cody later apologized and deleted what he called a "stupid" post on Facebook.
Merwitzer and elected officials in Miami-Dade wanted Gov. Ron DeSantis to suspend Cody for a raft of other alleged misdoings.
“There is a long history of Cody abusing his position to demonize, bully and harass residents," Merwitzer told WLRN at the time.
There still remains one other case pending in court between Cody and Merwitzer.
Cody filed a separate lawsuit against Merwitzer claiming he withheld public records from Cody in violation of Florida’s “government in the sunshine” law. Merwitzer claims the request was merely taking time, and he was not withholding records.
