The Medina City Council voted to strip councilmember David Lee of the title of deputy mayor by a 4-3 vote Sept. 14. The council voted that same night to make Councilman J. Decker the deputy mayor.

Lee remains on the council and is running for re-election in the November general election. He is running unopposed.

An email sent from Medina Mayor Patrick Boyd to Lee prior to the Sept. 14 Council meeting cited Lee’s lack of attendance at a finance committee meeting as a reason. In an interview with the Reporter, Boyd said the council wanted Lee removed from his post because of a number of missed committee meetings and that Lee was not communicating with council members.

Lee’s attorney, Judy Endejan, countered that Boyd tried to threatened him days prior into taking a leave of absence. Endejan said that she asked Boyd after he called for the motion to strip Lee of the title if Lee could make a statement, but was denied.

“I would suspect that there are other council members who may have missed other council meetings over the course of the year themselves. It’s clear that there were other reasons driving the mayor to do something to (Lee),” she said.

Lee’s lawyer also cited city statutes that say the council can only remove elected council members if there is an “extended excuse absence,” which she did not believe the one missed meeting cited by Boyd in his letter constituted.

Lee has yet to decide if he will challenge the vote, she said.