Divided community response reflects attitudes toward Council’s legal fees

At its July 16 meeting, the City Council agreed with all four findings in the Alameda County Grand Jury 2018-2019 report regarding the 2017 Alameda Fire Chief hiring process investigation. Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft, Vice Mayor John Knox White and Councilmember Tony Daysog voted to agree to the findings. Councilmembers Malia Vella and Jim Oddie recused themselves from the discussion.

The most severe of the four findings was Finding 19-4 that states “two Councilmembers did interfere with the City Manager’s ability to conduct an open and transparent recruitment for a new Fire Chief.” It was one of the first times members of the Council publicly acknowledged Vella and Oddie’s actions had violated of the Alameda City Charter.

“We cannot pretend that these series of events did not happen,” said Ashcraft. “The only way to bring closure is to address the issue head on. The cost to the city was not just financial. Public trust in government was diminished, and our city’s reputation has been tarnished.”

The three remaining Council-members wanted the meeting to signify the end of this two-year ordeal: “This is the end of the process,” said Knox White.

The three other findings included: Finding 19-1: The City of Alameda’s failure to provide Councilmembers with adequate training upon first being elected to City Council as well as annual training on governance; Finding 19-2: The City Charter fails to provide enforcement mechanisms when Councilmembers and staff violate provisions of the Charter and Finding 19-3: Councilmember Vella and Oddie were allowed to participate in the editing of the outside investigator’s report.

The city was required to respond to the Grand Jury’s findings and recommendations within 90 days of receiving the report on June 24. The Council responded to the report in a letter that was crafted at the meeting. The letter was addressed to Alameda County Superior Court Judge Wynne Carvill. In the letter, the three Councilmembers, along with city staff, detailed how they would implement the recommendations the Grand Jury proposed in their report.

Recommendation 19-1: The Alameda City Council must establish policies for mandating initial training and orientation and ongoing annual training for elected officials and senior staff related to ethics and governance. The Council stated it would “implement strategies and develop a work plan for implementation.”

Recommendation 19-2: City Council must investigate possible Charter or Municipal Code amendments. In response, Ashcraft established a City Charter Subcommittee, consisting of Vice Mayor Knox White and Councilmember Daysog, to review the City Charter. The subcommittee will also create a proposal delineating the specific types of conduct that constitutes a violation of Charter section 7-3.

Recommendation 19-4: City Council and staff should must develop and implement a code of conduct and Councilmember handbook. The Council stated it would develop a recommendation for the code of conduct within six months and the handbook within one year.

Finding 19-3: The Council should adopt a policy stating that Councilmembers who knowingly violate ethical codes of conduct or Charter provisions may not seek reimbursement for related legal representation. The Council stated it would come up with a recommendation within the next four months.

The question of whether the city should pay $200,000 for Vella and Oddie’s legal fees was briskly discussed among the public speakers at the meeting.

“They deserve to have their legal expenses paid,” said resident Zac Bowling. “It would set a bad precedent. At my job, I’m not personally liable if I make a mistake. I don’t have to burden that expense.”

Alameda resident Steve Slauson disagreed. “They damaged the integrity of the city government,” he said. “They have insulted the people of Alameda by asking us to pay for their attorney fees to cover the cost of their unlawful conduct.”

More than 20 people spoke at the meeting.