Indianapolis City-County Councilor Crista Carlino isn’t backing down.

In a candid interview with Indy Politics, Carlino defended her controversial call for Mayor Joe Hogsett’s resignation and pushed back forcefully on recent personal attacks made by Council Vice President Ali Brown. Carlino said while she expected political disagreement, she didn’t anticipate “character assassination” from her own Democratic caucus colleagues.

“I felt good when I went to bed last night, Abdul,” Carlino said. “And when I woke up and saw a podcast air featuring Vice President Ali Brown, I was deeply concerned and upset. Lots of profanity, lies, blame-placing… but more importantly, character assassination.”

Carlino was particularly offended by Brown’s claim that she “laid her failure at a Black man’s feet” and labeled her a “social media influencer politician.”

“That’s incredibly offensive,” Carlino said. “I rarely post on social media. When I do, it’s about my community—not myself.”

The public clash follows Carlino’s decision to call for Mayor Hogsett’s resignation over his administration’s handling of the Thomas Cook sexual harassment scandal. She made her statement during a council committee meeting—an unusual venue, but one she stands by.

“I stand by everything I’ve said,” she insisted. “I believe it was germane to the discussion. It was important that my colleagues understood why I was voting the way I did.”

Carlino also clarified reports that she had been kicked out of the Democratic caucus.

“I was given a 24-hour ultimatum: issue a public apology or the vote to eliminate me from the caucus would stand,” she said. “That was incredibly disheartening, especially considering I was then publicly degraded by the vice president of the caucus the very next day.”

Carlino ultimately made the decision to leave the Democratic caucus.

Though she issued a heartfelt apology, Carlino emphasized that she writes all her own statements and did not walk back her comments about the mayor.

“I didn’t apologize for calling for the mayor’s resignation. I apologized for the process, not the substance.”

When asked about potential retaliation during the upcoming budget cycle, Carlino was measured but firm.

“I would hope that, ethically speaking, we can move aside from our personal differences and do the budget work that the city and our citizens need.”

Despite the turmoil, Carlino said she feels “really good” about returning to the core duties of her office: stormwater projects, public works, and representing her west side constituents.

“That’s why I ran for office—to work for people, not to be an Instagram political influencer, or whatever I was accused of being.”

As for what’s next, Carlino plans to take a short break with her family for the Fourth of July before diving headfirst into budget season.

“I’ll be at the City-County Building just about every day through October,” she said. “Doing the good work.”

Carlino closed the interview with a message of gratitude to her constituents.

“I sleep well at night knowing my neighbors are proud of the woman they sent to City Hall.”

You can hear the 12-minute interview in the audio above.