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Misuse of Ethics Enforcement Process
Wednesday, August 1st, 2012
Robert Wechsler
It's always disheartening to see high-level officials
misuse an ethics program for the sake of personal revenge or, as the official says in
the case I'm looking at here, to get "my name cleared."
According to an article yesterday in the Austin Statesman, the last mayor recently filed two ethics complaints against the mayor who defeated him in May. The complaints allege that the current mayor choked the former mayor, filed accusations of corruption and misconduct against him with the district attorney's office, and sought to damage the former mayor's political reputation for his own political gain.
The current mayor (then a council member) apologized for the choking (he said he grabbed the mayor's collar) incident, and the council voted not to pursue any charges against him for this. The incident occurred two years ago.
What is most important is that choking, grabbing, filing charges with the district attorney, and trying to gain by attacking your opponent's political reputation are not violations of Leander's ethics code (click on the city's ordinances, and then go to Article 9.400). Nor should they be violations of any government ethics code. A former mayor should not only be able to read the ethics code for himself, but should also be able to check with an attorney or the ethics commission itself to make sure that he is not misusing the ethics enforcement process to give an official (and ethical) character to his allegations.
The ethics commission should not only dismiss the allegations, but also reprimand (informally) the former mayor for having misused the ethics process and explain to the community why what the mayor did was wrong. It should also suggest to him that he apologize to the community for having done this.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
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According to an article yesterday in the Austin Statesman, the last mayor recently filed two ethics complaints against the mayor who defeated him in May. The complaints allege that the current mayor choked the former mayor, filed accusations of corruption and misconduct against him with the district attorney's office, and sought to damage the former mayor's political reputation for his own political gain.
The current mayor (then a council member) apologized for the choking (he said he grabbed the mayor's collar) incident, and the council voted not to pursue any charges against him for this. The incident occurred two years ago.
What is most important is that choking, grabbing, filing charges with the district attorney, and trying to gain by attacking your opponent's political reputation are not violations of Leander's ethics code (click on the city's ordinances, and then go to Article 9.400). Nor should they be violations of any government ethics code. A former mayor should not only be able to read the ethics code for himself, but should also be able to check with an attorney or the ethics commission itself to make sure that he is not misusing the ethics enforcement process to give an official (and ethical) character to his allegations.
The ethics commission should not only dismiss the allegations, but also reprimand (informally) the former mayor for having misused the ethics process and explain to the community why what the mayor did was wrong. It should also suggest to him that he apologize to the community for having done this.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
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