CDN-NDG Mayor Sue Montgomery suspended without pay until next election

Montreal -

The Quebec Municipal Commission has suspended the mayor of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce for the remainder of her term in office after being found guilty of ethics violations.

The commission handed out the 120-day suspension, without pay, late Monday afternoon.

Her lawyer, Éric Oliver, told CTV News that his client is "disappointed" but "not surprised" about the decision. He said Montgomery intends to appear in Superior Court Tuesday for a stay of proceedings "based on the fact that the commission is not impartial in this matter."

"The last example of this abuse is that we received the decision at 12:30 p.m. today and the sanction is effective at midnight plus one minute tonight," he said.

"So she has less than 24 hours to contest the decision when other elected officials have days, and in some cases, weeks, before their sanctions become effective."

Montgomery's upcoming opponent Lionel Perez tweeted his approval of the news.

"Citizens can finally breathe better," he wrote on Twitter. "They are the real victims of this internal conflict at Projet Mtl, which has paralyzed CDN-NDG for more than two years."

Perez is set to replace Montgomery until the next election in November. 

In June, the embattled mayor was found guilty 11 ethics violations, including failing to show respect and courtesy to staffers, and for trying to suspend borough director Stéphane Plante.

She has long challenged the guilty verdict, and has claimed she has been under attack for trying to dismiss her director, following a long-standing clash with her cabinet chief, Annalisa Harris.

— This is a developing story that will be updated.