Niles Township Supervisor Jim Kidwell believes the township board may have violated the state open meetings act on two occasions this year.

During his supervisor report at Monday’s board meeting, Kidwell said the public wasn’t given proper notification of the reasoning for closed sessions on Feb. 22 and March 7. The reasoning must fit one of several criteria in order for it to be legal.

“When you go into closed session you need a detailed reason for going into the closed meeting,” Kidwell said. “Those meetings shouldn’t have happened.”

On both occasions, the reasoning for going into closed session was to discuss sections of the township policy manual, which doesn’t fall under the criteria for holding a closed session.

Kidwell is being targeted for recall on accusations of divulging to the public information from one of the closed meetings in question through a press release he sent out in February with details of an investigation of an alleged township policy violation of Treasurer Jim Ringler.

Kidwell said he noticed the possible violation of the open meetings act when reviewing the minutes of those prior meetings. Kidwell said he then contacted officials with the Michigan Township Association, who confirmed that such actions would violate the open meetings act.

When Kidwell approached Township Attorney Mary Spiegel about the issue, Kidwell said she became “very upset” and argued the closed sessions were legal. A few days later Kidwell contacted Berrien County Prosecutor Art Cotter about the possible violations, and Spiegel had already talked with him and given him a letter from Ringler requesting closed sessions on those dates.

If a board member requests a closed meeting and notice is given to the public, the meeting is legal, Kidwell said.

But Kidwell claims he never saw the letter from Ringler. At Monday’s board meeting, he asked the other board members if they had seen such a letter, and no one said they had. Kidwell then asked Ringler specifically if he knew anything about the letter.

Ringler declined to comment, arguing “we’re not going to do an investigation at a 7 p.m. business meeting.”

“This is basically your opinion on all this,” Ringler told Kidwell.

Kidwell said he plans to discuss the closed sessions and any possible violations with Spiegel and Cotter soon. Kidwell also added that if it is determined that the illegal closed meetings were held intentionally, there could be criminal charges.