CORRUPTION ACROSS AMERICA PART 3
THE CITY COUNCIL EDITION!
350. Hello fellow bloggers and welcome to another special edition of the Blog. This one features mayhem from city councils across America. And did we ever have a lot to choose from. I guess it makes sense since most cities have one mayor and five to ten city councilors. I will be addressing the size of our city council in an upcoming Blog.
351.Between 1999 and 2018, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) convicted 14,405 officials—7,762 federal officials, 1,971 state officials, and 4,672 local officials—in public corruption cases. Most of these cases resulted in resignation, removal from office, and/or a prison sentence.
When elected officials corruptly abuse the power of their office, they are aggressively investigated, prosecuted, and often convicted.
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STORY # 12
Federal judge sentences former council member Jeff Pastor in corruption case
Former Cincinnati City Council member Jeff Pastor was sentenced to two years in prison Thursday in his corruption case. Pastor pleaded guilty over the summer to one count of honest services wire fraud in connection with a $15,000 bribe to support a real estate development. Federal prosecutors recommended the sentence, calling his crimes "flagrant, aggressive and relentless."
As part of a plea deal, 11 other charges were dropped -- including bribery, corruption, and conspiracy. Pastor told the judge before sentencing he apologizes to the citizens of Cincinnati and the court, saying his life was not supposed to be this way. He added that it’s not how his mother raised him, and he was obsessed with achieving and succeeding.
His attorney argued that former Council member P.G. Sittenfeld received 48% less time than his recommended sentence, and that giving Pastor more would send a message that the privileged and more powerful get an upper hand. Sittenfeld was found guilty of bribery and attempted extortion, and was sentenced in October to 16 months in prison.
The judge, however, said Pastor's "scheme of greed" was different, because he used a middleman to hide his involvement and ruined that man's life. He also said Pastor was more persistent in soliciting bribes than other former council members, like Sittenfeld and Tamaya Dennard.
Pastor will begin serving his sentence Jan. 22 in a federal prison in Ashland, Kentucky, about 3.5 hours south of Cincinnati. He must also serve three years of probation.
STORY # 13
Two Lawrence women, including city councilor-elect, indicted on voter fraud charges
Fidelina Santiago won a seat on the Lawrence City Council last month. Now she and another woman are accused of voter fraud.
An incoming Lawrence city councilor and another local woman were indicted Wednesday on charges of voter fraud in connection with last month’s municipal election, Essex District Attorney Paul F. Tucker announced.
Fidelina Santiago — who won a seat on the Lawrence City Council in November — and Lawrence resident Jennifer Lopez were each indicted on four counts of illegal voting or attempting to vote; four counts of conspiracy to vote or attempting to vote illegally; four counts of unlawful interference with a voter; and four counts of voting obstruction, the DA’s office said in a news release.
Both women will be arraigned at a later date, according to the release. Boston.com has reached out to Santiago for comment; it was not immediately clear whether she or Lopez had an attorney who could speak to the charges.
Tucker said the DA’s office began investigating after Secretary of the Commonwealth William F. Galvin’s office alerted prosecutors to allegations of fraudulent voting in the city’s November election.
Last month, NBC10 Boston published video footage that appeared to show a woman removing mail-in ballots from a mailbox outside a Lawrence home. The news outlet spoke to another local voter who said someone had forged her signature on a mail-in ballot.
“The minute we heard about it we took action,” Galvin told NBC10 Boston at the time. “We’ve had a history of sending people to jail when they’ve committed crimes. That’s what we’ll do here.”
Lawrence’s election results show Santiago won the council’s District A seat with 537 votes to opponent Vladimir Acevedo’s 385.
“Interfering with an election not only undermines the legitimacy of government but erodes the public’s confidence in the process,” Tucker said in a statement. “My office will vigorously prosecute individuals that threaten the integrity of elections.”
STORY # 14
Camilla councilmen dealt final legal blow over residency
A state appeals court opinion has affirmed that two Camilla councilmen are unqualified to hold office for not being city residents. Now, another order to remove the two councilmen from their seats has been made.
The 22-page opinion WALB received upholds the trial court’s judgment from July 2023 that ruled both councilmen, Camilla Mayor Pro Tem Corey Morgan, and City Councilman Venterra Pollard, are unqualified to be on the Camilla City Council.
The court of appeal came to this opinion after investigations found several alarming actions the councilmen carried out to stay on the city council.
Morgan’s term as mayor pro tem was set to be up on December 31, 2023, while Pollard still had two years left in his seat.
Attorney Chris Cohilas tells WALB, that in the next 30 days, the court of appeals will send their judgment back to the trial court, and the decision will be final, which means both councilmen will lose their seats.
“Corey Morgan and Venterra Pollard have been on a taxpayer-funded field trip for years. It’s time for us to get them removed from office and get some folks into office that actually are connected to the community — that actually pay light bills in the City of Camilla and have the best interest of Camilla at heart,” Cohilas said.
WALB reached out to both councilmen before the opinion was released. Currently, we have not received any response.
STORY # 15
Sarasota City Hall needs an attitude adjustment
A recent email exchange between Sarasota City Manager Marlon Brown and City Attorney Robert Fournier exposed some of the dynamics that have resulted in the public, and the public interest, being locked out of the policy making process. At a Dec. 7 workshop on the topic of bars and nightclubs, it was revealed that Fournier had not been brought into the process of drafting the language proposed by the planning staff. It also became clear that Fournier had material concerns about the legal implications of how the planning staff was approaching the issue.
But on Dec. 8, Fournier wrote that he decided not to offer substantive comments on the staff's presentation because he knew from past experience that it might "engender a strong negative reaction (from the planning staff) and might result in an argument I had no interest in having."
Sadly, this closely resembles the daily experiences of many Sarasota citizens; too often, the city's planning staff holds one-way conversations with residents and neighborhood organizations in our community.
- Residents are viewed as obstacles to be avoided or dismissed
- Educated analysis is ignored or denigrated.
- Facts are not provided to support proposals or legislation.
And the planning staff apparently doesn't listen to City Manager Brown either.
On Dec. 11, Brown revealed the true depth of the staff's general truculence when he wrote the following to Fournier: "What you and I discussed at lunch was staff being wedded to their positions on (zoning text amendments) and not willing to move. I talk to them about that all the time."
Clearly, the time has come to put the public back into "public service." And it must start with reminding the city commissioners, the city management and the city staff that the residents of Sarasota – their constituents – are at the top of the city’s organizational chart.
What does this mean?
It means realizing that planning starts with planning for people. It means understanding that laws exist for a reason. It means accepting that regulations should not be changed without careful analysis – or without active involvement from citizens regarding the possible consequences for the public at large.
And it means that when it comes to weighing private profits versus public safety, the long-term sustainability and livability of the city must always take precedence.
Until the next election, our power lies in making sure our voices are heard by our elected officials. It's now time for us to ask our elected officials to direct City Manager Brown to take immediate steps to remind staff members that they serve the citizens of Sarasota.
STORY # 16
4 Of 5 St. Pete Beach Council Members Resign Over FL Law: Reports
St. Pete Beach could soon be without a governing body after four out of the city's five council members submitted their resignations at a Monday meeting, according to multiple reports.
The resignations came in response to a new Florida law called Form 6, which requires small-town officials to disclose personal financial information, including their net worth, the amount of money in their bank accounts and the cost of any assets they own over $1,000, WTVT reported.
The only member of the council who did not resign was Mayor Adrian Petrila, the St. Pete Catalyst reported.
"This is not me being scared; this is not me backing down," District 3 representative Ward Friszolowski said at Monday's meeting, according to the Catalyst. "This is a decision that was made for me, and I'm not really happy about it."
Form 6, which is set to go into effect on Jan. 1, has led to a wave of resignations across the state.
Previously, municipal elected officials were required to file a Form 1 financial disclosure listing assets and liabilities over $10,000, income sources and property holdings, according to the Talk of Titusville; however, it did not require them to specify dollar amounts and other details.
In North Palm Beach, a majority of council members resigned in response to the law. Resignations also happened in Naples, Dunnellon, Windermere, Longboat Key, Seminole, Belleair Beach and Indian Rocks Beach, according to reports.
City Attorney Andrew Dickman told the Catalyst council members will stagger their resignations to aid in the appointment of new commissioners. He also called a special election an "impossibility."
"I think it is a compelling discussion to have with lawmakers about individuals who I think, fairly, should be grandfathered in under the old rule because that’s not what they signed up for," Dickman told the publication. "Then we wouldn’t be here with such a problem, such a situation here at the end of the year."
Speaking with Fox 13, Petrila said the city is losing some "amazing" people.
"Personally, I feel bad that they’re put into the position where they have to choose between serving the city and not," he told the station.
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COMMENTS
I left this story for last because I found it very interesting. I didn’t even know about this law until a few days ago.
I don’t know what prompted it. Is it a bridge too far? Possibly. There has been a lot of resignations all over the state and I’m sure there will be a lot more to come in the weeks ahead. Certainly a story worth following.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
I can’t put into words how disgusted and disappointed I am with our city council. 3 emails to 9 councilors for a total of 27 emails and not one response. Irresponsible and shameful. So I emailed someone who is better versed than me in these things and asked him the following question.
“I was wondering if you know how long the city Council has to respond to me when I request information from them. Do they even have to?”
His answer
“They don't have to unless it's a foia request then they can either refuse it or give you timeline of response. Anything else they can just ignore, not a great system.”
He is right, it’s a pretty crappy system. So I thought I would look into the ethics committee. Guess what? Superior does not have one. I then googled ”Do most cities in Wisconsin have an ethics committee?”
There is no definite yes or no answer on Google but it looks like most of them do.
So, I did a little more research and found out that Superior have 43 departments and committees. But nothing dealing with ethics. Maybe city council could consider having one. Because those who succumb to corruption should ultimately be held accountable.
See you soon,
Brian
