RAPID CITY, S.D. – In an unprecedented move, the Rapid City Council, after a more than six hour meeting, voted to expel alderwoman Lisa Modrick.
The move follows an incident in which Modrick alleged airport board president Darren Haar threatened her in a meeting between the two.
Modrick works for WestJet, a tenant at Rapid City Regional Airport, and the two sides have been at odds with each other. Haar recorded the conversation without Modrick’s knowledge and turned it over to the Mayor after Modrick’s allegation was aired. When Allender claimed he didn’t hear any threats or abusive content as Modrick claimed, a hearing was set to discuss the situation. That hearing was Tuesday.
Tuesday’s hearing featured statements by both Darren Haar and Lisa Modrick herself.
Haar told council members he has never been accused of such a thing and this whole ordeal has been hard on him and his family.
“For those of you that know me, you know that I would never do these things. I would not damage somebody’s property; I would not hurt somebody in anger. And the fact that I have to say this to you is devastating.”
Modrick, in testimony before the council, apologized, and didn’t believe she created an embarrassment to Mr. Haar.
“By going to the mayor I thought the confidence would be there for me and it went to the press and that is where we are at today. I didn’t create an embarrassment for Mr. Haar, because if I had I was creating embarassment for myself first. It was released by city administration. I did make an apology, I said it at the podium earlier. And I meant that apology and it hurts. I could cry with Darren because I don’t know if we’ll recover from this in a long, long time.”
Modrick’s attorney, Steven Beardsley, was disappointed in the decision. He says this whole situation wasn’t handled appropriately, according to the city employee handbook. Beardsley has argued Modrick is an employee of the city and believes this should have been
handled privately – between Modrick, Haar and the mayor.
The council’s vote was 8-2 in favor of expelling Ms. Modrick from the council.
