Multiple times at the January 5 commission meeting, Debbie Trice interrupted speakers, citing ‘personal attacks.’
By Kelly Kirschner/Suncoast Searchlight
Original Air Date: January 23, 2026
Host: The Sarasota City Commission meeting kicked off the new year with things getting heated quickly. Residents showed up to complain about late-night noise in the Newtown/MLK Business and downtown corridors. But the newish mayor, Debbie Trice, found reasons to cut them off. Now, residents are upset with their First Amendment rights being violated. Kelly Kirschner breaks it down for Suncoast Searchlight.
Kelly Kirschner: It all went down on January 5 at Sarasota City Hall. The meeting started at 9 a.m, and first up was a gentleman named Victor Woods, a national motivational speaker who works with the Manatee Sheriff among other local and national law enforcement agencies. He was there for his friend Ronnique Hawkins, who lives in Newtown and can’t sleep because of blasting music after 11 p.m. Hawkins has cancer, and chemo makes it worse.
Woods shared:
Victor Woods: Just letting you know that what’s going on in Newtown is completely unacceptable. What’s good for the white people that live in Sarasota is good for those Black people even though they’re poor. If you don’t care about the adults, what about the children that live there? It’s a simple law enforcement issue.
Woods kept talking past his three-minute limit. The buzzer went off, and Mayor Trice jumped in.
Woods backed off, and Trice shuts it down quickly.
Newtown resident Ronnique Hawkins addressed the Sarasota City Commission on January 5, 2026. Seated beside her was her neighbor Howard Butts. Screen grab from the City of Sarasota video of the meeting via Suncoast Searchlight
Debbie Trice: Sir, thank you very much for your statement. Your time is up.
VW: Thank you very much. I hope that you good people will do something about it—
DT: Excuse me, no. You really need to stop now.
VW: Well, we need to control the music in Newtown.
DT: Please. You’ll be asked to leave if you don’t.
VW: I’m going to leave right now.
DT: Thank you.
VW: Right now.
DT: Mr. Martinucci.
VW: Have a nice day.
KK: Next, Mrs. Hawkins takes the mic. She calls out Commissioner Kyle Battie, saying he’s not living up to the legacy of his late District 1 City Commissioner and predecessor as well as Mayor, Reverend Jerome Dupree. Battie interrupts:
Kyle Battie: Mayor—if I may interrupt for a second—are you going to allow her to attack me?
DT: Okay—yeah—no personal attacks.
KK: Fast forward to the afternoon session of the city commission, and another resident, Jim Lampl, talks about downtown noise and taxes. He quotes a current commissioner from a public meeting held last year who said loud noise is “the price they pay for living in the downtown urban core.” Trice cuts in again.
JL: “That’s the price they pay for living in the downtown urban core.” That was a comment made last year by one of our sitting commissioners. That was about the noise, so—“That’s what they deserve.” This morning, the same commissioner supported Mr.—
DT: Are we—are you—you sort-of look like you’re doing a personal attack on an individual.
JL: No, this is professional. This was done at the dais. It’s professional.
DT: But you’re singling out a commissioner rather than the commission.
JL: I am not using the commissioner’s name.
DT: You’re still singling out an individual.
JL: Then let me amend this.
KK: Trice later defended herself, telling Suncoast Searchlight she’s keeping decorum.
Sarasota Mayor Debbie Trice. Photo courtesy of City of Sarasota via Suncoast Searchlight
DT: We’re seeing this at the national level. Who’s the president today? Can I say what that president doesn’t want to hear versus what the previous president was happy to hear? Same thing with the governor. There are some things that we’re no longer allowed to say. Teachers are no longer allowed to say certain things in the classroom. Elections have consequences.
KK: So what you’re saying is we’re bringing that home to Sarasota, in a similar vein as we see in DC and Tallahassee?
DT: All I’m saying is whoever is at the table has been entrusted with using their judgment.
KK: Experts aren’t buying it.
Bobby Block from Florida’s First Amendment Foundation calls it “BS and unconstitutional.” He warns Sarasota could face costly lawsuits similar to the 2024 case where Brevard County School District paid out over a half a million dollars in a case that they lost against Moms For Liberty of Brevard County for nearly identical manners in which speech was suppressed at public meetings.
Sarasota residents are fired up as well. Jim Lampl called the city attorney’s office demanding clear rules on subjective determination on what is and is not allowed speech at public meetings. Others have also emailed commissioners, saying that this chills free speech. One resident, Virginia Hoffman, said she was incredibly upset. City Attorney Joe Polzak says that he is now working with City Auditor & Clerk Shayla Griggs on updating the rules that will address citizen concerns.
Kelly Kirschner, reporting for Suncoast Searchlight. To read the full article, go to suncoastsearchlight.org/sarasota-mayor-first-amendment-public-comments-trice.
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