City Council Member Judy Fike has been reinstated to her position more than a week after she was removed from a Groveland City Council meeting and suspended without legal authority.

The reinstatement follows an emergency lawsuit filed July 8th by Lake County Commissioner Anthony Sabatini, who is representing Fike. The lawsuit alleges the city violated several provisions of Florida and U.S. law, including the state’s open meetings law, the Florida Constitution’s due process clause, and the First Amendment.

“Today I filed an emergency lawsuit against the City of Groveland on behalf of my client, City Councilmember Judy Fike, for unlawfully removing her from a city council meeting and purportedly suspending her with no legal basis whatsoever,” Sabatini said in a statement. He cited violations of Article I, Section 4 of the Florida Constitution and the city’s charter.

Fike was removed from a council meeting earlier this month after the city raised concerns about her past political commentary on social media, specifically posts made between 2019 and 2022—years before she took office on her then Twitter now X account.

In a social media post Tuesday, Sabatini announced that Fike was reinstated following a preliminary hearing at the Lake County Courthouse.

“My client, Groveland City Councilmember Judy Fike, has been reinstated to the Groveland City Council, effective immediately,” Sabatini said. “The case will continue, but the major form of relief has been granted.”

Sabatini also accused the city of acting “recklessly and lawlessly” in its attempt “to go ‘woke’ and politically correct.”

The case remains ongoing.