Judge dismisses Brooklyn Park council member’s lawsuit over call for mental health evaluation

A district court judge has sided with the Brooklyn Park mayor and City Council after fellow member Maria Tran sued them, deciding the officials did not defame Tran when they censured her and publicly called for a mental health evaluation.

Judge Bridget Sullivan dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice, ruling the officials did not violate Tran’s First Amendment rights, the human rights act or open meetings law. The lawsuit stems from a series of events among city officials involving allegations of drug use at City Hall, police reports filed against colleagues and officials publicly voicing concerns about Tran looking to obtain a gun.

“We are pleased with the Court’s well-reasoned decision to dismiss this matter,” Paul Reuvers, attorney for the city, said in a statement.

Tran said in an email that she believed the “the court’s order relied heavily on the defendants’ narrative, which I believe contained serious inaccuracies.

“This decision is not the end of my journey,” she said. “I will continue to pursue every lawful avenue to have the facts heard and to ensure that the truth comes forward. My focus remains on fairness in public institutions and on standing up for what is right.”

Tran’s attorney Paul Ostrow said they disagreed with the court ruling and are considering their options. Tran, who often attends city meetings virtually, has repeatedly argued that she is being targeted and retaliated against by fellow officials.

“This case raises very important issues impacting the First Amendment and the need for transparency in local government,” Ostrow wrote in an email.

The city spent $11,000 on an outside investigation, which found the allegations against Tran were substantiated. That May, the council held a closed meeting to discuss the report and decided to issue Tran a letter of reprimand.

Tran objected to the letter at a public meeting, and also accused the city staffer who filed the complaint against her of using drugs on city property, a claim officials said had no evidence. The council later censured her and barred her from serving on committees or commissions and representing the city at events.

Tran contended she did not accept the findings of the investigation and denied any wrongdoing. In her lawsuit, she argued the council violated open meetings law, saying an investigation of an elected official was not a valid reason for a closed-door meeting because she is not a city employee under the council’s authority.

The judge ruled the council appropriately held the closed-door meeting, and that Tran’s claim lacked merit. She said the council member “contends she is not an employee for the purpose of her Open Meeting law claim but then claims to be one for the purpose of her Minnesota Human Rights Act claim.”

After the censure vote, Tran filed several police reports alleging threatening behavior from city officials, which the police chief has said were unfounded. Tran testified she believed the Brooklyn Center and Brooklyn Park police departments were part of a sinister conspiracy against her, the judge’s ruling says.

Tran also submitted a Minnesota Peace Officer Standards and Training report against the chief, which was dismissed, according to the ruling.

Mayor Hollies Winston and the council majority in October 2024 discussed the incidents in a public meeting and signed on to a letter saying that Tran was displaying a pattern of “increasingly disturbing behavior” and that they would like her to receive a mental health evaluation.

Tran’s lawsuit said she has endured “widespread bullying and harassing behavior, including the use of the Police Chief to falsely imply that the Plaintiff presented a danger to members of the public.”

But the judge found that Tran failed to prove her fellow elected officials defamed her, as they were voicing their opinions when stating concerns about her mental health.