Three Marseilles residents have sued the city of Marseilles in federal court in Chicago, alleging that city officials “retaliated” against them for exercising their rights to free speech.

Melissa Pointer, Scott Damnjanovic, and Christopher McKinnon seek millions in compensation, plus assorted remedies, from the city, Mayor Jim Hollenbeck, Police Chief Todd Gordon, City Clerk Lesley Hart, and Morris attorney Randolph Gordon, who represents Hollenbeck privately.

The case is assigned to Judge Mary M. Rowland in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, based in Chicago. Court dates are pending.

A written reply by the defendants to the Sept. 23 complaint was not on file as of Tuesday, at which time no attorneys had entered appearances on behalf of the defendants.

Marseilles city attorney Christina Cantlin said Tuesday the matter was turned over to the city’s insurers and “we are no longer involved.” Hollenbeck said he and city officials would defer comment until such time as they could meet with their incoming legal counsel.

Gordon said he, too, turned the matter over to his insurers and is awaiting notification on who will represent him.

“At this point I can say I’m not very concerned about this at all,” Gordon said, “and I look forward to it being dismissed.”

Pointer, Damnjanovic, and McKinnon filed their complaint pro se – that is, without legal counsel – and variously allege the city and the named defendants violated their First and 14th amendment rights through “a sustained pattern of harassment, intimidation, and retaliation by the defendants against the plaintiffs.”

The nine-page filing cited multiple allegations of retaliation committed against the three plaintiffs. These include:

• McKinnon alleged that after questioning, on Sept. 6, 2023, the city’s proposed purchase of property for $1.3 million, he was issued a citation for alleged grass violations.

“The suspicious timing and irregularity of the citation strongly indicate it was issued in retaliation for plaintiff McKinnon’s protected speech.”

• Damnjanovic submitted, in August 2024, Freedom of Information Act requests concerning sexual harassment complaints and settlements involving city officials. Hart, he alleged, “concealed responsive records” and “falsely denied the existence of such records in written FOIA responses.”

• Pointer’s water was shut off without explanation on March 3.

Collectively, the plaintiffs said, the city used “retaliatory” means intended to censor their free speech.