DA clears Port Hueneme council in city manager selection

Source: Ventura County Star, Calif.文件倉Aug. 27--The Ventura County District Attorney's Office said it found no evidence that the Port Hueneme City Council broke state law in its selection of a city manager.The council last month apparently decided in a closed session that Cynthia Haas was its top candidate for city manager. The matter was listed on the July 15 closed-session agenda, but City Attorney Mark Hensley announced after the meeting that no reportable action had been taken.Hensley later said there had been nothing to report because no appointment had been made and no official vote had been taken, but an expert on the state's open-meeting law disagreed.This week, Special Assistant District Attorney Michael Schwartz wrote in a letter to Port Hueneme Mayor Ellis Green, "It is my conclusion that there is no evidence of violation of the Brown Act in these meetings."Schwartz looked into the issue after an editorial in The Star asked the district attorney to investigate. He said he reviewed council agendas, minutes and portions of audio recordings from the council's July 8, July 15 and Aug. 5 meetings. Schwartz also researched the law and discussed the matter with Hensley."We have no evidence that an actual appointment was made on or before July 15," Schwartz wrote in the letter. "Instead, it appears from the chronology that the city attorney was authorized to negotiate terms with one or more potential candidates identified by the City Council."Citing a California Court of Appeal ca存倉e, Schwartz said the court found "only a candidate's actual appointment, not a candidate's nomination, needs to be reported" on the day of the action.Negotiations were successful, and the council voted in open session Aug. 5 to appoint Haas to the post and approve her contract.Green said he was confident the council acted fairly and legally."We meet publicly to discuss everything that we're required to," he said Tuesday.Port Hueneme had been without a permanent city manager since October, when Dave Norman resigned at the council's request. In December, the council met privately to discuss the replacement process. In April, it met privately again to discuss traits it wanted in a new city manager.That prompted the District Attorney's Office to tell Hensley that based on the intent of the Brown Act, the April discussion should have been public."I believe that should have been done in open session," Schwartz said Tuesday.Green said the district attorney and city attorney had different opinions on that issue."The fine legal points -- we leave those to our attorneys," Green said. "We want to keep our residents informed. At the same time, we have to protect the rights and reputations of people involved in a legal and confidential process."Haas, former deputy city manager in Carlsbad, started her new position Monday.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 Ventura County Star (Camarillo, Calif.) Visit Ventura County Star (Camarillo, Calif.) at .vcstar.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉