Martinsville City Manager Denies Allegations in Civil Rights Lawsuit Over Rawls Ejection
- BTW21
- 7 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Source Cardinal News https://cardinalnews.org/2025/07/02/martinsville-city-manager-responds-to-civil-rights-lawsuit/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook
MARTINSVILLE, Va. (BTW21) — Martinsville City Manager Aretha Ferrell-Benavides has filed a formal response disputing the majority of claims made in a civil rights lawsuit stemming from the controversial ejection of City Councilor Aaron Rawls during a public meeting earlier this year.
The response, filed Friday in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Danville, marks the first official reply from any defendant named in the suit.
Ferrell-Benavides and Deputy Reva Keen of the Martinsville Sheriff’s Office are both listed as defendants. As of Monday, Keen has not yet filed a response.
The lawsuit centers on a March 25 City Council meeting, during which Deputy Keen escorted Rawls out of the council chambers.
Rawls alleges in his complaint that Ferrell-Benavides non-verbally instructed Keen to remove him while he was speaking about pay raises for senior city staff.
He claims the removal violated his First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights.
Ferrell-Benavides’ response denies any constitutional violations, stating she did not instruct or signal the deputy to take any action against Rawls.
The city manager's legal filing directly contradicts Rawls’ version of events, in which he claims he was speaking courteously and within the rules of the meeting.
The ejection followed a tense exchange between Rawls and Mayor L.C. Jones, though Jones has denied giving any directive for the removal.
In the aftermath, Jones stated that Deputy Keen’s actions were consistent with her training and responsibilities as courtroom security.
Martinsville Sheriff Steve Draper has declined to comment on the pending litigation but previously confirmed that no disciplinary action would be taken against Deputy Keen.
Since the lawsuit was filed on June 2, city officials have remained largely silent, continuing to conduct meetings as scheduled.
Rawls, Jones, and other council members have not publicly addressed the lawsuit in detail.
Rawls’ complaint alleges that Ferrell-Benavides and Keen “acted in concert” to infringe upon his freedom of speech, citing video evidence from the meeting that purportedly shows the city manager giving a non-verbal signal to Keen.
Ferrell-Benavides’ legal team has denied that any such signal was given and has rejected all claims that she violated Rawls’ constitutional rights.
The case remains active in federal court, and further responses from other parties involved are expected in the coming weeks.