Activist Devin Branch found not guilty of assaulting former East Cleveland mayor Gary Norton as Branch, who led the successful recall election against Norton last year, says the prosecution was malicious and politically motivated

Ohio's most read digital Black newspapers. Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com

By Kathy Wray Coleman, editor-in-chief

CLEVELAND URBAN NEWS.COM-EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio- East Cleveland community activist Devin Branch, who led the successful recall election last year of former East Cleveland mayor Gary Norton, and who briefly served on city council after Norton's ouster, was found not guilty on Friday of an alleged misdemeanor assault on the former mayor.

The jury deliberated for less than a half hour before returning an acquittal verdict on what Branch called a malicious prosecution that he says was "politically motivated."

Norton summoned police last year on the day of the recall election, claiming Branch assaulted him, Branch saying he only knocked a clipboard from his face and that Norton was angry because he was facing recall.

Branch collected more than 1,000 signatures for the special recall election last December where Norton was voted out of office along with then city council president Thomas Wheeler.

Brandon King, then the vice president of council, replaced Norton as mayor per the requirement of the city charter.

Branch was appointed to the five-member city council at a December 29 meeting by then council president Barbara Thomas and then vice president Nathaniel Martin to the council seat previously held by Wheeler, and Kelvin Earby was appointed to the seat previously held by King.

But because Councilwoman Joie Graham left the council meeting before a vote was taken council purportedly lacked a three-person quorum and King, by charter, subsequently negated the actions of Thomas and Martin, who remain on council but not as president and vice president respectively,  and removed Branch and Earby.

Mayor King appointed community activist Ernest Smith to replace Branch on city council, and he replaced Earby with Christopher Pitts.

Thomas claims that she and Martin acted in good faith and says their appointments of Branch and Earby were legal, a claim the city law director says is simply not tr ue.

An impoverished suburb of Cleveland, East Cleveland has a population of some 17,000 people and is roughly 99 percent Black.

Ohio's most read digital Black newspapers. Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com