Tea Tree Gully ex-councillor Paul Barbaro has accused mayor Kevin Knight of defamation
Former Tea Tree Gully councillor Paul Barbaro is suing mayor Kevin Knight for defamation after allegedly calling him “a bloody idiot” and “a knucklehead”, court documents show.
North & North East
Don't miss out on the headlines from North & North East. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Tea Tree Gully Council demands mayor Kevin Knight to resign
- Get the most out of your Advertiser digital subscription
Former Tea Tree Gully councillor Paul Barbaro is suing mayor Kevin Knight for allegedly making defamatory comments at two council meetings.
Mr Barbaro, 52, is seeking aggravated damages after Mr Knight allegedly called him “a knucklehead”, “a bloody idiot” and repeatedly directed him to “sit down” in a raised voice at a meeting on September 25, 2018, documents lodged in the District Court of South Australia show. Mr Knight is defending the claim.
Mr Barbaro also claims Mr Knight, at a council meeting on October 9 that year, suggested the Office of Public Integrity should investigate his connection to Golden Grove resident Joseph Carbone and city-based developer Joey Carbone.
Mr Barbaro claims he has been “held up to public odium, scandal and contempt”, suffered injury to his character, reputation and feelings; and caused anxiety and distress due to the comments.
“At the time of (Mr Knight’s comments)… the applicant enjoyed an exemplary reputation as a member of the council and as a disability advocate within the Tea Tree Gully community,” Mr Barbaro submitted.
“(Mr Knight)... knew that the imputations arising from the publication... thereof were false and published them intending to cause real harm to (Mr Barbaro) as is apparent from the terms used by the respondent.
“At the time of his publication (Mr Knight)… either knew that the imputations conveyed were substantially false or was recklessly indifferent to the truth or falsity of those imputations.”
Mr Barbaro also claimed Mr Knight had been informed by the council’s chief executive John Moyle, prior to the October 9 meeting, that the council had no evidence to substantiate the allegations the mayor would make against him.
Mr Moyle suggested Mr Knight should raise his concerns about Mr Barbaro’s “purported misconduct” directly with the mayor, Mr Barbaro claims.
Mr Barbaro said Mr Knight did not approach him prior to the October 9 meeting to raise his concerns.
“Had (Mr Knight)… contacted (Mr Barbaro) as suggested by the council’s CEO the applicant would have explained that the allegations the respondent intended to make at the October 9 meeting were utterly false,” he submitted.
However, in a defence statement lodged with the court, Mr Knight denied he called Mr Barbaro those names and said his rival’s conduct was “disruptive and provocative” at the September 25 meeting.
However, he did not deny he raised his voice at Mr Barbaro at that meeting.
He said Mr Barbaro attempted to take points of order on September 25 which were “procedurally incompetent” and his comments “constituted an attack on the defendant and his fitness as a candidate for mayor at the upcoming election”.
MORE NEWS:
Three Adelaide councils take action against serial hoarders
Tea Tree Gully Council lobbies for speed limits in River Torrens Linear Park
Burnside Council rejects proposal to ban the sale of fur on council land
He also believed Mr Barbaro’s criticisms over the September 25 meeting “may have been confected in order to damage the electoral prospects of the mayor and improve the electoral prospects of (Mr Barbaro)... for that position”.
Mr Barbaro’s request via a July 24 letter for a retraction and an apology was denied by Mr Knight, who said his allegations were “not fair or based on facts”, documents show.
A settlement conference has been set for August 25.