Impeachment voted down

Over the course of two Biscayne Bay’s Student Government Council at Senate meetings, and one SGC-BBC General Meeting, the impeachment of SGC-BBC President Denise Halpin has been put onto the agenda, removed from the agenda, and then brought to a vote, all by SGC-BBC graduate school senator and chair of the Rules, Legislation, and Judiciary chair, Sagine Delly.

At the Oct. 26 SGC-BBC General Meeting, during the vice president’s report, SGC-BBC Vice President Emilio Collyer, addressing The Beacon’s Oct. 26. Editorial regarding the SGC-BBC’s transparency regarding the impeachment of SGC-BBC President Denise Halpin, had Delly read her list of charges against the president.

After the council was finished with the general meeting’s agenda, Halpin opened to floor for discussion based on Delly’s allegations.

Delly, without hesitation, motioned for Denise’s impeachment in order to begin the impeachment process. The motion was seconded by SGC-BBC Senate Speaker Pablo Haspel, only to be voted down by a vote of two in favor, five opposed, with one senator abstaining.

The reading of Delly’s charges and the motion to impeach Halpin came in the wake of the Oct. 24, SGC-BBC weekly Senate meeting, which saw a quick change of attitudes towards opening the Senate floor to the discussion of SGC-BBC

President Denise Halpin’s impeachment.

When the Senate reached the point in the agenda designated for said discussions during the Oct. 24 meeting, at which Halpin was not present for but was invited by the Senate to attend, Delly, motioned to remove the impeachment discussions from the agenda.

However during the Oct. 17 SGC-BBC Senate meeting, Delly motioned to discuss the potential impeachment of Halpin which passed by a vote of five in favor, two opposed, and four abstentions.

“I had a talk with President Halpin and there’s no purpose for impeachment,” said Delly during the discussion for the motion to remove impeachment discussions from the Senate’s agenda.

On Oct. 24, Delly sent Student Media a document dated Oct. 19 titled “List of Concerns with President Halpin,” that was originally sent out to SGC-BBC.

The document alleges that Halpin merits impeachment based on incompetence, nonfeasance, and of being in violation of the Student Government Association Constitution and Statutes.

The document mentions that Halpin was allegedly in violation of seven statutes and one article of the SGA Constitution.

These allegations have not been substantiated, however.

Two of the statutes Delly listed were not duties of the president but of the vice president and the Chief of Staff, but because they fall under the executive branch, Delly felt that Halpin failed to hold them accountable for not fulfillingtheir responsibilities as outlines in the SGC-BBC Statutes.

Christopher Morisset, freshman biology major, was appointed to the Lower Division Senator seat with four senators voting in favor, four voting against, and one abstention at the Oct. 24 Senate meeting.

Chief Justice Appointed
Richard Azimov was unanimously appointed SGC-BBC Chief Justice at the SGC-BBC General Meeting on Oct. 26.