Court File No.

: CV15-23114

Good afternoon Madam Justice Pomerance,

My name is John Middleton, I was a Candidate in the 2014 Municipal Election in Ward 5. I attended
the Clerks Office on February 4, 2016 to obtain your Endorsement on this case from January 15, 2016
as I wanted to file a Motion to gain access to the Election records from the 2014 Municipal Election, it
was suggested to me, that a letter to you explaining the situation might get some direction from your
Honour as I am not a party in this matter but your Endorsement on January 15, 2016 has terminated
my access to the 2014 Municpal Election records granted to under Sec 88, (5) of the Municipal
Elections Act.
Back Ground
1. I attend the Motion before your Honour on December 29, 2015, at that Motion I heard loud and
clear that the City of Windsor wanted very urgently to destroy the Election records from 2014
even though their was another matter before the Ontario Court. This concerned me that the City
of Windsor Lawyers were more concerned with the Cloud hanging over the City then the
matter before the Ontario Court that may need the Records.
2. I attended the January 8, 2016 Motion heard before your Honour, as you are aware, the City of
Windsor Lawyers asked for and you granted the session to be in camera. This concerned me as I
think anything to do with Elections in Canada should be available to the Public.
3. I attended the Clerks department at City Hall on January 11, 2016 to obtain access to the 2014
Election records, as you are aware your Honour my access to the Election Records is granted
under the Municipal Elections Act per

Public records
(5)Despite anything in the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act,
documents and materials filed with or prepared by the clerk or any other election official under this Act
are public records and, until their destruction, may be inspected by any person at the clerks office at a
time when the office is open. 1996, c. 32, Sched., s. 88 (5).
4. The Customer Service Person at the Clerks Office told me that the Election Records were at the
Legal Department at 400 City Centre Square, I attended their office only to be told that they
didn't not have the records, but, they would take my name and contact information. I indicated
that the Clerks office had just told me the records were in their procession and again they said
they didn't have them.
5. I went back to the Clerks office and asked why they had sent me to the Legal department to see
the records. They said again that the Legal Department had the records, I then produced the
name of the person at the Legal Department (Karly Morgan) that I was dealing with, I asked to
speak to Chuck Scarpelli but was told he wasn't available, the Customer Service Person then
went to the back office and returned with a change in the story, she indicate that the Election
records were in fact at City Hall locked in a safe and no one their had a key to access the
Records. I then showed her a copy of the Municipal Elections Act that gave me access to the
records during regular hours of Business, I was still denied access to the Election Records, I left
and went to the Mayors Office.
6. At the Mayors Office I explained the details of the last 40 minutes of trying to gain access to the
2014 Election Records and the different information that I was given by the Clerks and Legal
Departments to the Receptionist, about 10 minutes of explaining the situation, Norma Coleman
the Mayor's Chief of Staff came out of her office and indicated that she had just gotten off the
phone with someone at the Legal Department and that someone would be contacting me and
that was all she could tell me. I questioned her on the fact that I was being denied access to the
Election Records and showed her a copy of the Municipal Election Act Section that pertained to

access to the Election Records and asked that the Mayors Office intervene on my behalf and
was told they couldn't and that the Legal Department would contact me.
7. When I returned to my Office there was an E-mail from Jody Johnson (Monday Jan 11, 2016
3:13 pm) a Lawyer for the City of Windsor asking me for specific list of documents that I
wanted to view, I indicated to her that I would not be providing a list to her and demanded
immediate unfettered access to the 2014 Election Records and warned her that I would report
her to the Law Society for her Sharp Business practises while trying to limit my access to the
Election Records as per Section 88 (5) of the Municipal Election Act.
8. On Jan 12, 2016 4:20 pm I received an e-mail from Jody Johnson explaining that she was only
trying to facilitate the process and that she would provide copies and the cost for such copies or
I could have access to the documents on Thursday Jan 14, 2016 at City Hall Square at Noon in
room 204.
9. I responded Jan 13, 2016 at 5:17 pm and pointed out that her reasoning for how to proceed
wasn't consistent with Section 88 (5) of the Municipal Election Act. I indicated that for this
viewing only, I would allow her to dictate the time for which the documents could be viewed so
that a lot of time wasn't on e-mails back and fourth and that I would be attending the meeting on
Jan 14, 2016 at Noon.
10. When I attended the meeting at City Hall Square Jan 14, 2016, this is the process I was forced
to go through in order to view any document. The access I was given was supervised and
controlled by 3 individual's ...from a law firm in Toronto, when I asked for a document they
would count the documents put a sticky on the top document with the number of pages given to
me, then notes were made on a lap top computer, if I took a picture of any of the documents, I
had to put a sticky on that document so that when I handed it back to them, they would count
the documents to verify I returned the correct amount, then they would take a picture of the

document that I took the picture of, then make a note of the document that I took a picture of
the on the lap top.
11. This process of looking at the documents was time consuming and a waste of time, I didn't get
access to all the documents that I want to see, it seemed to me, that the City was assuming I was
going to take or try and alter documents.
12. Under Section 88 (5) it's clear that the Public documents are to available at the Clerks Office
for inspection when the Office is open, that wasn't the case here and if fact control was given to
an out of Town Law Firm.
13. When the meeting was over on Jan 14, at 4pm I confirmed with Mrs. Johnson that her Office
would be looking into and answering approximately 8 questions and that I would be requiring
further Inspections of the records, including the Ballot boxes that weren't made available at this
meeting.
14. I contacted Mrs. Johnson by e-mail on Jan 18, 2016 to inquire if she had obtained the answers
to my questions and to inform her that I would be needing access to the Election Records on
January 20, 2016 at 10 am.
15. On January 18, 2016 Mrs. Johnson responded to my e-mail stating that your Honor had made an
order on January 15, 2016 that among other things there would be no Public access to the
documents unless authorized or directed by an order of a Court.
16. I attended the Court on February 4, 2016 to obtain a copy of the Endorsement that your Honor
issued on January 15, barring Public access to the 2014 Election Records so that I could prepare
a Motion for your Honor, to explain to you the issue that has arisen, stopping me from looking
at the 2014 Election records afforded to me under the Municipal Elections Act, in particular
Section 88 (5)

17. Any direction from your Honor would be appreciated.

Regards
John Middleton
Ward 5 Candidate
February 9, 2016