PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. — A Broward County judge has temporarily blocked Pembroke Park from holding a special town commission meeting that could have resulted in the removal of Geoffrey Jacobs, the town’s mayor.

Judge Shari Africk Olefson granted a temporary injunction Tuesday, cancelling a 1 p.m. special meeting scheduled to take place at Pembroke Park Town Hall. The meeting had been called to consider whether the mayor’s seat should be declared vacant.

The ruling comes hours after Jacobs filed an emergency lawsuit challenging the town manager’s authority to move forward with the meeting.

Jacobs’ attorney, Michael Pizzi, has accused the town manager of orchestrating what he describes as an illegal attempt to remove a lawfully elected mayor. Pizzi had planned to hold a news conference Tuesday afternoon outside Town Hall to discuss the lawsuit.

In the complaint, Jacobs argues the town manager scheduled the meeting with less than 72 hours’ notice and set it for a weekday afternoon while Jacobs was out of state working as a pilot.

The lawsuit contends the town manager lacks the legal authority to remove the mayor or declare his office vacant without a court order.

The filing relies on a January legal opinion from the town’s attorney stating that while the town commission may review evidence related to residency, only a circuit court judge can make a final determination removing an elected official from office.

Pizzi denies allegations that Jacobs abandoned his residence or threatened the town manager. The lawsuit states Jacobs maintains a Pembroke Park address and that his driver’s license, voter registration, and utility bills reflect residency in the town.

However, the lawsuit does not address other residency-related records reviewed by Local 10 News. St. Lucie County property and tax records show Jacobs and his wife own a home there and receive a homestead tax exemption and a full disability exemption, both of which require the property to be claimed as a primary residence.

Records also show the home was purchased using a VA-backed loan, which requires borrowers to certify their intent to occupy the property as a principal residence.

Those exemptions and loan requirements are not discussed in the lawsuit or in the press release issued by Jacobs’ attorney.

Olefson ordered that no action be taken to remove the mayor while the injunction is in place. A court hearing on the matter is expected to be held within the next ten days.

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