In other words, yes, it's true: Cherie Kidd has been found GUILTY of violating the City's ethics code. Well, one count of the ethics code, anyway. But guilty is guilty, and this is good and refreshing news, though, as stated above, it would have been difficult (even with a Lumens full of fudging) to arrive at any other outcome, given the facts of the case as captured on video.
The subsequent fact that Cherie lied to the Ethics Board to their faces probably didn't help her case much either. So, good job Marolee Smith, well done Ethics Board (it was a unanimous decision), and this is an excellent foundation for the ethics complaints still in the pipeline to land on. And none of this is even an April Fools Day joke, though the timing of the announcement is appreciated. 
Now, looking ahead, I have some questions for you all to ponder:Will this lead to any self-reflection or personal growth for Cherie Kidd on issues pertaining to her relationship with the voters and taxpayers of Port Angeles? (Hint: See photo above.)
What effect, if any, do you think this will have on the upcoming Bill Bloor ethics complaint?
What effect, if any, do you think this will have on how the City Council - and especially the Fluoride Four - conducts business?
So, with an eye to public comment periods to come...What do you think an appropriate punishment for the GUILTY Kidd would be? The City Council may - or may not - take that up as a topic of discussion at a future date. And do you think they will - or won't?
From the Better Late Than Never Department:
Cherie Kidd (and her zombie minion Pat Downie)
finally gets with the whole Twilight/Goth thing.
what a HUGE moral victory for the Make Port Angeles Great Again movement. Of course, no mention that all of Dan Gase's violations were thrown out. No mention that three of four of Cherie's violations were thrown out. And had she simply asked for a motion to adjourn and it passed - there would have been no violations. But you don't mention any of this. No specifics. Just guilty, guilty, guilty.
ReplyDeleteAnd that this "Ethics" Board overlooked all these blatant violations, as seen by ANYONE who watched the video can see, is a GOOD thing, in your opinion?
DeleteYou seem to think that because the ETHICS Board did such an obviously crappy job, it is something to be seen as a positive for the community?
Really?
@ Anon 2:28
DeleteYou DO realize that what Cherie and the others did is anti-American? That is cannot be justified or supported?
Of course, if we lived in North Korea, the charges would have been thrown out. Of course, Cherie wouldn't even have been charged with anything. Or, if she pissed off the higher ups, she would have been executed for "crimes against the people".
But we don't live in North Korea. Our founding fathers felt so strongly about freedom of speech, and were so against "tyranny" that they urged future generations to stay vigilant, and to work to protect the freedoms they wrote into our country's charter.
That this so-called "Ethics Board", which itself admitted it didn't know what it was supposed to do, threw out charges of obvious violations is not something to be celebrated. Those that care about this community and it's future now have yet another publicly visible negative to overcome.
The April Fools' joke is still on the public.
ReplyDeleteThis Board refused to actually investigate whether she directed the posting of a new sign policy on her own (as opposed to entire council action), and if true would have been another violation. BTW Smith submitted emails proving she did that on her own as a dictator. And the clerk said she put up the sign after Kidd talked to her about it, but once she admitted that Kidd was involved, no more questions.
The Board also didn't ask any questions at all about her acceptance of being "Chair" when the Mayor was there (who IS the chair when attending). If true yet another violation.
So what this appears is throwing the proverbial peanut to the citizens. The Board can say hey, after all we found a violation, but this was the most obvious one of many and simply couldn't be whitewashed. But the truth is, there was no real "investigation" of the whole complaint. They didn't even watch Engel's video. Just another PA "move along here, nothing to see".
Please, DO NOT GET ME WRONG. I agree with your points. I really do.
DeleteBUT...The systems of governance in Clallam County and Port Angeles are SO dysfunctional, SO dismissive of the citizens they are supposed to serve, and generally SO VERY out of touch with reality that, in this case, I think there is some sort of significance - small though it may be - that a process put in place by said governing body actually came back with any sort of "negative" outcome for a member of that governing body. Yes, it's a peanut, as you say, but that beats getting nothing at all tossed your way.
So, again, please don't think that I think that this is some sort of seismic change or crushing defeat for the Fluoride Four. It's not. But it's a baby step in the right direction.
At least in my opinion. Feel free to disagree. Though she'd never admit it publically, this has to embarrass the thin-skinned Cherie Kidd quite a bit. It also provides a (small) foundation for the next complaint working its way through City Hall to settle on - if they so choose.
My god - in the article she continues to try to claim she followed the Council's rules of procedure! Show us where it says that at the moment you find you lose your shit that it is Council procedure to go off the rails and start banging your gavel, screeching, and ignoring your fellow council folks. You can't adjourn a meeting by just saying it is so - that's the whole point of parliamentary procedure - it requires a second and a vote and she FAILED at all counts. What a complete and pathetic failure as an elected official, elected to serve, yes SERVE the people, not try to control for your own personal benefit, just to turn face when things aren't going your way. Why she isn't embarrassed beyond belief goes to show what a narcissistic, peanut-brained, entitled very tiny fish in a puddle that she is. Does she even realize that she's done - she will never have credibility again and the ruins pf Port Angeles were as far as she could ever hope to go to begin with. I don't have enough words for her blatant arrogance and I will be sick if the Council just lets her off on this. They need to lead and set an example, and show the public a gesture to help regain trust. At the very least remove her from the Deputy Mayor position so she can't chair a meeting again. Perhaps require she attend parliamentary procedure training? I can recommend several good classes.
ReplyDeleteNext up: Formal filing for ouster for lying under oath. Now this is one we can look forward to because the oath is the bedrock of our court system and if a court has to decide on a bold faced lie under oath that should be a no-brainer.
ReplyDeleteRCW 9A.72.040 - False swearing.
ReplyDelete(1) A person is guilty of false swearing if he or she makes a false statement, which he or she knows to be false, under an oath required or authorized by law.
(2) False swearing is a gross misdemeanor.
RCW 9A.72.020 - Perjury in the first degree.
(1) A person is guilty of perjury in the first degree if in any official proceeding he or she makes a materially false statement which he or she knows to be false under an oath required or authorized by law.
(2) Knowledge of the materiality of the statement is not an element of this crime, and the actor's mistaken belief that his or her statement was not material is not a defense to a prosecution under this section.
(3) Perjury in the first degree is a class B felony.
RCW 9A.72.030 - Perjury in the second degree.
(1) A person is guilty of perjury in the second degree if, in an examination under oath under the terms of a contract of insurance, or with intent to mislead a public servant in the performance of his or her duty, he or she makes a materially false statement, which he or she knows to be false under an oath required or authorized by law.
(2) Perjury in the second degree is a class C felony.
RCW 9A.72.080 - Statement of what one does not know to be true.
Every unqualified statement of that which one does not know to be true is equivalent to a statement of that which he or she knows to be false.
Pick one or all. Mr. Nichols, are you out there?
I'm sure Cherie will enjoy prison.
DeletePlenty of French toast to be had.
DeleteI have a question that is probably stupid, but what the hell. Now that Cherie Kidd has been found guilty of a ethics violation and the penalty if any ( as so blithely pointed out by the Daily News) goes before the city council for a decision, does Cherie Kidd, as a council member, have any say in what the penalty should be for her violation? I would think that having been found guilty she would be suspended from council business until a penalty decision was made but I'm sure I am wrong for some strange reason.
ReplyDeleteShe also lied under oath while testifying before the Ethics Committee. Nothing will do but to step down or have her removed. We are a better city than the likes of her.
DeleteAt the very keast I would think she should abstain from voting or deliberating.
DeleteEthics violations have a range of specific potential penalties, but the council can't remove another councilmember. So even if the Deputy Mayor title is stripped and/or other punishments, the perp can just keep on keepin' on until the next election.
DeleteDon't forget, at what appeared to be Bloor's urging the council already had their first special meeting trying to water down the ethics code, thankfully there was no consensus.
Isn't this Cherie's last term? If so, how very convenient. She can bow out without the ugliness of having folks campaign against her. The Council will probably do a ceremonial goodbye with bouquet of flowers, thank you for your dedicated service, etc and she can go on her merry way thinking she accmplished something. Today's (Sunday's) article on the ethics committee just continues my disbelief. She says she did the best she could in a difficult situation. Honey if that's the best you can do, lord help you if you even get a run in your nylons. I guess that's why she's opted to stay in Clallam County all her life - I bet she couldn't find her way out of a paper bag.
DeleteSo soon! But here we are again with...
ReplyDeleteTIPS FOR TROLLS #4: When you're trying to seem smarter than another person, while also trying to insult said other person, be sure that you get that person's name right.
I keep getting troll talk from some sad, clueless soul who has it in for the guy who runs the Port O Call. As all you readers EXCEPT FOR ONE TROLL know, the person who runs the POC is named Dale Wilson.
But the troll, over and over again, submits rants against Dave Wilson. Over and over again. A one-off typo this is not.
So, why don't you try submitting your comments to the POC website from now on, troll, and see if DALE Wilson lets them through. Hmmm?
CK, as you likely know better than most of us because of this site, there are all kinds of malcontents out in the world. Some are a bit brighter than others.
DeleteI'll assume that your current troll is a moron from Port Angeles. Or, was from Port Angeles, and moved eastward a few years ago. Either way, you have to feel a little sorry for people who are SO stupid as not to even understand what they are doing, or who they are trying to do it to.
Kinda like Port Angeles, generally.
The troll is obviously rattled. They've now resorted to sending in comments threatening to "expose" DW. Yes, DW. If they just use his initials, then they minimize their chances of getting his name wrong, right?
DeleteOf course, that doesn't account for their other misspelled words and improper punctuation, but...Every little bit helps, I guess.
So, heads up Dale Wilson (aka DW). A lonely troll is going to "expose" your "meandering" path to Port Angeles. I am sure you're worried.
And yet another comment coming in raging about "Davey."
DeleteMental health issues much, troll?
Is there anything this city has ever done correctly to the letter of the law? ANYTHING?
ReplyDeleteThis whole ethics process was wrong from the get-go.
The council was supposed to have formally chosen a pool of at least 9 pre-approved applicants to serve for 2 years (Code 2.78.030.A&B). This to be done "at the first City Council meeting on every odd year", meaning January 6, 2015.
This council never even appointed the pool of applicants as required by the code. Last month 7 of them just magically "extended" their own term without the required supermajority vote of council. This after their terms had already expired by code.
So please tell me how is each 3-person board for any of these complaints proper?
As Mr. Prince is so fond of asking: am I wrong?
In answer to your very first question...No.
DeleteIn answer to your very last question...No.
regardless Kidd was still under oath & even hardcore criminals know not to lie like that.
Deleteso if she isnt charged everyone else in the county waiting for misdemeanor trial has to go free too? Porter is that true? LOL
I appreciate this forum but some of the comments carry quite a bit of discriminatory language targeting oppressed and marginalized groups. Plus what's up with the crazy nationalist fervor? Everyone does realize the good ole USA is nothing more than an illegal occupation of indigenous lands right? It's just another colonial project designed to extract resources and exploit labor for the ruling class. There has been a community living successfully in what is now called Port Angeles for over 10,000 years. Descendants of European migrants should listen, *be respectful in our use of language*, behave as good guests, and recognize our place and the work we need to do to heal this community and find a new path to walk,.. away from our current trajectory of a continued Euro centric hierarchical thinking process laced with patriarchy, sexism,and racism. The colonial mindset presents a disturbing ideology exemplified by the common and somewhat normalized use of oppressive language and behavior in our everyday lives,... which quite frankly is creating a shitstorm of community health issues and leaving in its wake an overtly violent and corrupt legacy for the European migrant descendant/colonizer community. Want to fix pa? Look no further than ourselves and the process European peoples went through when being conquered and colonized.
ReplyDeleteUh, yeah...
DeleteLots of "crazy nationalist fervor here," that's for sure.
Right...
Oh CK, you're better than that. While 12:44am may not have the answer, read the tone of the plea. That was definitely a person trying to figure things out in a complicated world. And besides, who among us has the answer for this "perfect storm of stupid" now on our hands, other than shrug & wait for the 2017 election? City hall aint gonna fix itself, perps like Kidd will never step down, so it comes back (once again) to persuading good non-sociopathic people to run for office.
DeleteAnonymous 9:45 AM...While I thank you for thinking I'm "better than that," I have to admit I'm not sure what "that" I'm better than. Because, A) I don't see a lot of "crazy nationalist fervor" expressed here, or B) Lots of "discriminatory language targeting oppressed and marginalized groups." So C) I don't see what those complaints necessarily have to do with the local issues discussed here.
DeleteBut I am certainly open to further clarification of additional information from you and/or the OP. Have at it.
@945 here again. Just sayin that many posters don't always follow the thread to the subject line, myself included. I have no idea who the OP is, and have no possible clarification, but he or she doesn't seem like a bad person. Guess I'm sayin just ignore comments that aren't chock full o' solutions.
DeleteOur problem in PA always seems to come back around to, what to do? As for Kidd, sure, email Nichols and demand a prosecution. But politically something like that just won't happen with him (hope I'm wrong). Doesn't mean we shouldn't try. After all, if Marolee had not filed her complaint, one lone person, we wouldn't be talking about how to leverage this situation that fell into our laps by the perp herself!
BTW this site has become my primary news source, and, having been awakened to how bad the PDN and it's owner really is, I don't even look at that rag anymore. I wish more folks would realize that isn't news, they are just being played by big media. Thanks CK.
We need to make it very difficult for County Prosecutor, Mark Nichols to let Kidd's perjury go un prosecuted.
ReplyDeleteMark, if you have any respect for the rule of law you must know the importance of giving truthful testimony under oath. Kidd lied like a 2 year old with her hand in the cookie jar.
Do council members ever ask questions about the "Expenditure Reports" that they seem to just summarily approve along with a bunch of other stuff at the beginning of each of their meetings?
ReplyDeleteEvidence of runaway spending is attached to each council packet (available on-line, usually the Friday before each meeting) and is quite sobering to read. For example, the April 5 meeting packet contains over 30 pages of itemized expenditures made since the previous council meeting. Among them: a check to Nippon Industries for $237,991 (see p. 31; over $21,000 in consulting fees to Cascadia Law Group; many, many meal and travel reimbursements for staff; and on and on and on. And this is just for a two week period!
I'm sure that there are many questionable expenditures hiding in plain sight in these reports. If council members fail to question them, then maybe CK could start a thread where readers of this blog can report on their own findings following scrutiny of the expenditure reports?
That HUGE number amount going to Nippon could, sadly, be legit. It could be money coming back to them from the State and passing through the City's (grubby) hands, or some other legal-if-undesirable arrangement.
DeleteBUT, yes, there are always lots and lots of questionable and interesting expenses in those reports. They can give you a much clearer picture of the (penny ante) scams in place and in play, as well as the ingrained spending habits of the City's administrators. (Like those big bills for Big Bill Bloor farming out any and all REAL legal work to outside law firms, as mentioned, and as just one example.
I would be happy to serve as a clearinghouse or discussion repository for notable items from the expenditure reports. Also, let me suggest that citizens email questions about specific items to City Council members, and let them in on the digging and pondering over what they mean - as opposed to the blanket okaying of them every other week.
Just sent this to City Hall. Will be interesting how they respond to Kidd's company which directly benefited from EDC for which she voted.
ReplyDeleteGreetings,
In light of the current trust issues with City Hall and the community we feel it would be important to bring about transparency with the local voters and taxpayers and we are certain you as our locally elected will agree.
Requesting that the voters/taxpayers see who has benefited by the Economic Development Council (EDC), since thousands of dollars of taxpayer money has been directed to it by City Hall.
For example in the 2015 EDC report they state: Helping an excellent truck and storage rental company to secure various tax breaks... to lower the costs of its future expansion.
What EXACT company is this. EDC and City Hall should be proud and we need to put this company in the spotlight to show how much taxpayer money has helped it. EDC was partially funded by taxpayers so we have a right to know about their success.
-This is all about transparency and accountability-
To ignore this simple request will bring about more distrust and that's certainly something we all want to avoid as we are all better than that.
It's best practices to account to the people as to who has benefited by taxpayer funded EDC.
Looking forward to your assitance in helping us out with our research in supporting this great city of Port Angeles.
Regards,
T. Smith and Associates
Good luck, and please let us know what - if anything - you get in response.
DeleteYeah, good luck with that. When you figure out how Cherie's business is not entitled to the same service every other business is entitled to, you may have a case.
Delete6:59,
DeleteAre you serious? Do you actually not see the conflict of interest whereby someone with the power to appropriate money goes and appropriates it to a program by which they get a direct benefit?
Does not a rational council member recuse themselves from such a vote to avoid the very appearance of impropriety?
Shame on her and Collins both, he who sits on EDC board himself.
This has the makings of a very interesting ethics violation charge.
@6:59AM, such a comment adds nothing whatsoever to the discussion. A conflict of interest is a conflict of interest. If you don't see that, then you must be one of her handlers.
DeleteOh, honestly. Do you think she can't drink fluoridated City water? Do you think she can't walk on the new waterfront? Do you think she can't park in the parking lot they paved last year? Cause she voted to pay for all these things, you know.
DeleteDo you think a senator can't take a tax break? Do you think Obama couldn't use Obamacare?
Every g.d. time a politican votes, they get the use of what they voted for, just like everyone else. Kidd has received no unfair benefit. You are pathetically confused about this stuff.
Anonymous 7:19 AM...You may - may - be technically right, or mostly so. But, in terms of ethics, in terms of fairness, and in terms of full disclosure, this set up FAILS miserably. Anyone with an ounce of ethics in them would have disclosed the potential conflict of interest. At the very least.
DeleteDisclose what? It's public knowledge that she voted to fund EDC; that their service is available to all businesses; that she has a business. As long as her business did not receive a benefit that is not equally available to every other business, no wrong is done, nothing is unfair, and the complaint is what will fail.
DeleteInteresting that council seems to be shielding EDC. It's a simple question. The taxpayers funded the EDC (via Gase, Collins, Kidd, and Downie votes)So the taxpayers should be given a list of what businesses received EDC help. Collins is on council and EDC and so far he has refused to release any records. At the very least this should be public record.
DeleteAnon 6:57
DeleteNo, really? You're not THAT dumb. You're just funnin' us, right?
There is a big difference between "benefiting" from being able to walk down a public street you voted upon as a city council member, and getting financial benefit for your profit making business via tax payer monies you have control over, and directly vote for.
You're not supposed to vote money for things your own business is going to profit from.
" Economist Ian Senior defines corruption as an action to (a) secretly provide (b) a good or a service to a third party (c) so that he or she can influence certain actions which (d) benefit the corrupt, a third party, or both (e) in which the corrupt agent has authority. Daniel Kaufmann, from the World Bank, extends the concept to include 'legal corruption' in which power is abused within the confines of the law — as those with power often have the ability to make laws for their protection."
And: "Public sector corruption includes corruption of the political process and of government agencies such as the police as well as corruption in processes of allocating public funds for contracts, grants, and hiring."
And "Corruption is essentially the use of public power for private gain."
Have a familiar ring to it?
Man o man. That ya hafta even explain these things is bad, bad, bad. No wonder things are as they are here.
Did the council ever get its 2015 year-end report from EDC? Do they even care?
ReplyDeleteLet's see if once again "AAA Affordable Storage" owned by one Robert Forsberg got a BRE (business retention) spiff from the EDC, and/or a certain service "benefit" from EDC to a holding company that makes the end payoffs.
Because per the City-EDC contract, the City is "interested and concerned with the economic utilization of services" of EDC, and the EDC "shall report to the City...on the status of...general economic concerns."
Sheesh, if there's anything we need to pay more for, it's certainly "economic trends" and "general economic concerns" that only EDC can provide.
Somewhere, Max Mania has to be laughing his ass off over all this.
ReplyDeleteWonder when & what the Council will make of this.
ReplyDeleteWill it make it onto the April 19 agenda?