The Council shall be the sole judge of the election and qualifications of its Councilmembers-elect and its own members, and the grounds for forfeiture of their office, as listed in Section 4.05, and for that purpose Council, by ordinance, shall prescribe the process of citing witnesses, administering oaths and producing evidence, and its enforcement through the Department of Law. If, by an affirmative vote of five (5) members of Council, a witness is declared in violation of the ordinance enforcing this section, the case shall be referred to the Department of Law for appropriate action before the proper court.
A member charged with conduct constituting grounds for forfeiture of office shall be entitled to a public hearing on demand, and notice of such hearing shall be published in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the Municipality at least fifteen (15) days in advance of the hearing. (Amended November 2, 1976)