I spent the day today taking depositions of various City officials, including Dan Lindheim and Dan Purnell, Executive Director of the Public Ethics Commission. Here are the highlights:
1. The PEC has a rule that the Executive Director issue a formal report to the PEC within 30 business days, except if the PEC grants and extension. Mr. Purnell, admitted that he basically never complies with that rule, and never gets an extension. And he doesn't seem to care. Never mind that his job is to serve the commission devoted to upholding integrity and trust in government. Never mind that justice delayed in justice denied. He's collecting his paycheck; that's all he seems to care about.
2. The complaint regarding public records compliance that I filed in September, 2009, will likely not go to hearing until next year. The hearing is not likely to be completed until my lawsuit is over. Meanwhile, the City continues to spend tens of thousands of dollars of taxpayer dollars fighting the public's right to timely access to documents. Money it doesn't have.
3. Lindheim, who admitted that his job is to "run the City," had only the vaguest ideas about my public records complaints. He'd never read Mr. Purnell's report, outlining numerous compliance problems. He wasn't aware of specific policies or procedures that the City had regarding compliance. He was only vaguely aware that this was a cause of action in my lawsuit.
4. Lindheim wasn't aware that PSOs had been pulled off of their beats, one for six months, nor was he aware that this was a specific allegation in my lawsuit.
5. Lindheim continues to defend the City's decision not to hold police academies (other than the two lateral academies that produced only 7 or 8 officers total) and deliberately reduce the size of the police force, as within the legalities of the former Measure Y.
6. Lindheim promised to staff the PSO positions in January, from the existing ranks of the police department. When asked about the crime reduction team positions (Measure Y/BB requires that at least 6 of the 63 positions be crime reduction team positions devoted to specific duties), Mr. Lindheim appeared to be unfamiliar with that particular requirement, or the fact that the requirement had not been fulfilled for most of the duration of Measure Y. However, he assured me that the City would "comply with the law." Yeah, I've heard that one before.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
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'he assured me that the City would "comply with the law."'
ReplyDeleteAnd if that were the case, this website and your work wouldn't need to exist. But obviously they have a problem with the "comply" part.
I think the City said our PSO was on loan to the City, or something like that. Would be interesting to know whether Measure Y or the General Fund paid for Officers during that period. What does the City say about that Marleen? Who paid for the PSO's during their absence from communities?
ReplyDeleteAlso, around the time of the M-Y theft for recruitment, we were told this by a City Council aide:
ReplyDelete"The resolution passed by the City council last night includes this language:
'That to the extent that any Measure Y funds advanced for the recruitment are used for the hiring of non-Measure Y officers, the General Fund shall reimburse the Measure Y Fund for the equitable and proportionate costs of the recruitment of the non-Measure Y officer' ".
Is that language in the resolution that used the M-Y money for recruitment, and if so, I take it that's already a part of your 1st lawsuit?
LG - when were you told that your PSO was "on loan?" Which beat do you live in? I can look into that. Currently, I am aware of Beats 24Y and 13Y that did not have PSOs due to temporary transfer, and two other beats, which the City has refused to identify.
ReplyDeleteAs far as repaying the money to Measure Y, that's from my previous lawsuit. Yes, there is language in the actual resolution requiring repayment of the money, and for whatever reason, the City chooses to ignore that language. The issue is on appeal and we should be getting a decision soon.
Marleen, assuming Lindheim retires at the start of Quan's move the the City Throne, is Lindheim out-of-the picture regarding the lawsuits? Would his replacement take his place at future proceedings?
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