Attorney accuses Columbus Councilor of improper behavior as dispute escalates
City manager Isaiah Hugley’s attorney, Scott Grubman, accused Columbus Councilor Byron Hickey of hypocrisy, saying he improperly pushed for his wife, a corporal with the Columbus Police Department, to receive a pay raise.
This accusation comes after Atlanta-based attorney Leslie Hartnett wrote a letter on behalf of Councilors Hickey of District 1, Charmaine Crabb of District 5, Joanne Cogle of District 7, Glenn Davis of District 2, John Anker of District 9 and Toyia Tucker of District 4, saying that they would not apologize or retract public statements in response to an April 18 cease-and-desist letter.
During an April 8 council meeting, Hickey questioned whether Hugley violated the city’s code of ethics by not disclosing to the Columbus Council that his wife, state Rep. Carolyn Hugley (D-Columbus), received a small-business grant of approximately $29,000 for her State Farm Insurance agency.
The grant application was disclosed to Mayor Skip Henderson and city attorney Clifton Fay before Hugley sent it to deputy city manager Pam Hodge to handle on Fay’s instructions.
Grubman gave the named councilors seven days to apologize and retract public statements accusing Hugley of wrongdoing, or he would proceed with legal action.
In the response, Hartnett argued that Hickey’s questioning of Hugley’s ethics was appropriate because councilors have a responsibility to raise concerns when there are questions of public trust.
“Public officials are entitled to speak on matters of public concern,” Hartnett said in the letter. “And in the performance of their legislative functions, they are afforded strong protections under the law.”
Accusation against Hickey
In an April 28 response, Grubman said councilors had been “engaged in a pattern of harassment and retaliation.”
“This campaign intensified in February of this year, after Councilman Hickey began to harass my client, as well as the City’s human resources director (Reather Hollowell), and attempted to improperly influence the City’s decision of whether to award a pay raise to his wife Sandra Hickey, a corporal with the Columbus Police Department, while that matter was pending appeal.”
Hickey “verbally accosted” Hugley and Hollowell about the issue before following up with an email, Grubman wrote.
He attached a copy of the email Hickey forwarded to Hugley and Hollowell on Feb. 12, showing that members of CPD were instructed in August 2022 to speak to then-Police Chief Freddie Blackmon about the appeal.
These actions appear to violate the same code of ethics Hickey accused Hugley of violating, Grubman said in the letter.
Grubman also noted in the letter that he has other documents and information related to Hickey’s “improper behavior,” but he wasn’t including it because some of it occurred while the council was in executive session and at least one document is potentially covered by attorney-client privilege.
However, the lawyer said he would be willing to share these documents at a later date.
Hickey declined to comment when the Ledger-Enquirer asked him Tuesday about this accusation.
The council’s role may be ambiguous
The Columbus Council delegated administration of federal COVID funds through the American Rescue Plan Act to the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce, Grubman said in the letter.
That resolution meant the council wasn’t involved in the administration of the small business grant.
“In this case, given that administration of federal ARP funds had been delegated — by your clients — to the Chamber, and in light of the fact that the Chamber had already independently approved Ms. Hugley’s ARP application,” Grubman wrote. “It is ambiguous — at best — whether the section of the Ethics Code (and in particular the language that you bolded in your letter) applied in this situation.”
Grubman asked Hartnett to instruct councilors to maintain documents, data, communications and electronically stored information related to the city manager and Hickey’s attempt to influence his wife’s pay raise appeal.
“As I stated in my initial letter, my client simply wants to be able to clear his good name and serve out the remainder of his employment until his already announced retirement,” Grubman wrote. “To accomplish this goal, your clients would be well advised to cease all defamation, harassment, and retaliation. Mr. Hugley reserves all legal rights.”
The Ledger-Enquirer has asked Grubman whether he plans to file legal action against the councilors, but Grubman didn’t reply before publication.
This story was originally published April 29, 2025 at 3:53 PM.
