A decision on whether Councillor Darren Hill will have to resign from City Council will be decided by a Court of Queen’s Bench judge.

Hill was late in filing election contribution and expense statements, a violation of a city bylaw that disqualifies elected officials from their position.  However, a section in the bylaw states that council can make an application for the matter to be put in front of a judge.

Council unanimously passed a motion for that to happen, including Mayor Charlie Clark, who says an independent evaluation of the situation makes the most sense.  Clark suggested whether they chose to do nothing and let Hill return to council, or disqualify him from council, each of those paths would likely end with an appeal in front of a judge.

City Solicitor Cindy Yelland explained that while the matter is going through the court process Councillor Hill can remain on council and city committees to perform his duties.

Councillor Zach Jeffries says the job of council is to find accountability, and while the Cities Act allows council to make a decision regarding Hill, he doesn’t think it would be appropriate for council to pass judgement on him. “I think it’s reasonable to assume that in any circumstance, whether Council takes any option, something is going to end up in front of a judge and the Court of Queen’s Bench, no matter what happens.”

Hill took full responsibility for his actions but once again said a diagnosis with COVID-19, along with other health and personal issues lead to brain fog, contributing to missing the deadline.  Hill says he continues to work through his health issues, and even took the month of April off to recover. He suggested while he had multiple issues occur at the same time it doesn’t mean he isn’t able to represent Ward One and the citizens of Saskatoon, but it does mean he’ll have to do things differently