A petition for an emergency stalking no contact order was filed against Champaign Mayor Don Gerard on Thursday. It was denied by Circuit Court Judge Arnold Blockman on Friday.
Attorney Mike Antoline spoke for the plaintiff, Laura Huth, President and CEO of the nonprofit do good Consulting and a former Urbana alderwoman.
“We felt there was sufficient grounds to file it,” Antoline said. “It was necessary to file it to protect our client.”
According to the petition, Gerard and Huth were in a relationship from April 2011 to July 2012, during which Huth provided consulting to Gerard’s campaign, Friends of Don Gerard.
According to the petition, the fees for the consulting were left unpaid and became one of the factors that lead to a civil dispute where Gerard “disparaged” Huth.
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The petition called for Gerard to no longer contact Huth and to stay 100 yards away from her home and business.
When asked to comment on the denial of the no contact order, Gerard said in an email, “I do not believe there is anything to the allegations.”
Austin can be reached at [email protected].
