Sunnyside Council Washes Hands Like Pontius Pilate
December 14, 2009 6 Comments
In a disappointing vote tonight, the Sunnyside City Council smacked down the notion of hearing evidence from investigators by a vote of 5-2. Council Members Nick Paulakis and Mike Farmer voted in favor of receiving the reports of two independent investigators into the work environment at City Hall.
Mayor Garcia, Mayor Pro Tem Jim Restucci, Council Members Tom Gehlen, Theresa Hancock, and Carol Stone voted against hearing all the evidence. Council Member-Elect Don Vlieger took the oath of office, but will not be seated on the Council until after the end of the year.
Like Roman authorities of old, that ceremoniously washed their hands when local authorities proposed putting Jesus to death, the Sunnyside City Council has acted out the role of Pontius Pilate by refusing to hear the evidence.
They appear to think it is not their role to inquire whether policies they enact are being carried out correctly.
I presented 94 petition signatures to the City Council at the meeting, asking for them to receive reports directly from the investigators. Detective Chumley, President of the Sunnyside Police Officers’ Guild, and Josh Roe, President of the Sunnyside Firefighters’ Union signed on to the petition with their support.
Mr. Roe took a turn at the podium stating his belief that all investigative evidence should be considered before taking action against employees. He pointed out the two employees on leave are not represented by a union, and further said that he felt like the Interim City Manager was exploiting this. To support the idea of fairness for all labor at the City, he supported having the City Council listen to all the available evidence.
I would like to thank everyone that signed the petition, and those that came out to support Pam Sandifer and Terri Rhode being given a fair hearing. The room was full at the meeting.
On a personal note, I do not have a historical record as being the biggest supporter of unions. However, incidents like these are why government employees join unions. Unlike a private company, in government operations, employees are sometimes the victims of abusive politicians and their appointees. Decisions are made for political reasons, and not necessarily business ones.
The City does not have an Internet policy, nor an e-mail policy. Yet, they want to discipline employees for what they said in e-mails. If the Interim City Manager believes he can withstand the same scrutiny when applied to e-mails he has sent to other city employees, then there is nothing to be concerned about. However, I have good reason to believe a double standard is being applied in this case. Not being willing to listen to reports from multiple independent investigators should be a clue to those that are unconvinced.
A discipline/termination hearing is scheduled to be held tomorrow for long-time city employees Pam Sandifer and Terri Rhode.
Round and round we go…
About Jason R. Raines
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Hrmm…somehow I was hoping for a post about the budget info.
C T D,
The week is just getting started. The 2010 budget was approved tonight and I will write about it sometime this week. I look forward to reading your continuing comments.
At least Pilate considered the evidence. He first proclaimed Christ innocent. Then the assembled mob screamed for crucifixion anyways and Pilate capitulated.
I have never been to a meeting that was handled so unprofessionally. To call for the vote in the same breath as recognizing the motion without opening the floor for discussion is tantamount to the crowd screaming for crucifixion regardless of the evidence.
I can respect people who hold contrary views to my own. Having been on the council, I know there are times when I needed to take unpopular votes without being able to disclose all of the background information. However, when council members shoot down a motion with rehearsed exuberance without a word of explanation in front of a diverse group of assembled citizens, I hold absolutely no respect for such gutlessness.
Thanks for the comment CW. I was curious why the motion was not debated also.
I must say very well said CW, someone once accused Mr. Raines of being “very narrow minded” when all he was looking for was the simple truth, I think that statement applies to our elected representatives who they are representing is beyond my grasp now.
Granted the council meeting was very disappointing and put us silly community members in our place. It will be interesting as we move forward how this continues to play out. The good news is Councilmen Paulakis and Farmer stood up for justice and transparency. The bad news is the remaining gave the voters of Sunnyside the finger. To be the optimist Council elect Vlieger stood up on the community side. This presents hope for the future.
I agree with Mr. Raines previous post commenting on unions. A very unfortunate result of last nights vote is to deliver a clear message to city employees. If they are not in a union, get there fast. Yes, this will drive costs up for us as tax payers. But that’s what we wanted when we voted these people in right?
Last night the council authorized a very large payment to the new city employees. If I am nor mistaken the cost is over $300,000 now since July. Yes I realize the city attorney who resigned was costing over $100,000 per year which was very expensive. But to put this in perspective I don’t remember large payouts for lawsuits until we hired Bridges and these ace attorneys. So from now on let’s budget $600,000 per year for attorneys and another million or so for payouts to our city employees girlfriends. This is a new beginning for Sunnyside. Hop on the bus. It’s gonna be a ride.