City Related | City Ethics

October 6, 2009

Extortion Convictions in Dallas -- A Fascinating Story

Yesterday, according to an article in the Dallas Observer, Don Hill, a former Dallas council member, and four of his associates were found guilty of participating in an incredible extortion plot relating to affordable housing in South Dallas. The story, as produced by the prosecution with the help …

Enforcement & Complaints October 6, 2009

A Second Baltimore Legislative Immunity Decision: There Are Limits!

There are limits on the legislative immunity of local government officials, according to a decision yesterday by the Baltimore Circuit Court in the Dixon case (attached; see below), involving the mayor of Baltimore at the time she was president of the city council. The court rejected Dixon's motion…

Ethics Codes & Reform October 5, 2009

Ordinary vs. Technical Readings of Ethics Provisions -- A Case Study

Update: December 2, 2009 (see below) I have often complained about how local government officials and attorneys approach government ethics matters in an overly technical manner. Well, ethics commission attorneys can do this, too. In terms of the language in ethics codes, I think the rule should be,…

October 3, 2009

A Miscellany

When Is a Confidentiality Waiver Not a Confidentiality Waiver? It is common for ethics codes to allow respondents in ethics proceedings to waive confidentiality and make the proceeding public. This is what South Carolina governor Mark Sanford did, according to an article in The State back in August…

October 1, 2009

The Next Stage in the Baltimore Legislative Immunity Case

The next round of memoranda have been filed by the parties to the Dixon case, where the Baltimore mayor (though the case relates to her activities as council president) is raising a defense of legislative immunity in a criminal proceeding for perjury (relating to failure to disclose) to keep out ev…

Conflicts of Interest September 23, 2009

The Conflicts of Local Government Employees Running for or Holding Elective Office

When a government employee holds or runs for elective office, there can be conflict of interest problems. The principal problem occurs when the government employee has to participate in a matter that directly or indirectly affects his or her agency or department. Whether there is a conflict depends…

Local Government Practice September 18, 2009

Jurisdiction and Oversight Over Nonprofits Doing Local Government Work

Privatizing local government functions can cause conflict of interest problems, but at least contractors can be held to contracts and replaced when they run afoul of ethics or other laws or requirements. The same is not necessarily true when non-profit organizations take over local government funct…

Enforcement & Complaints September 17, 2009

Ethics Programs Protect Good Faith Complainants

Accusing someone of a conflict of interest can lead to trouble, especially if the person you accuse is a litigious lawyer and you do it outside of an ethics proceeding. This is what one can read from a $5 million suit filed by a former town attorney against the town of Victor, NY (pop. 10,000) and…

Conflicts of Interest September 12, 2009

Conflicts of Interest Go Beyond Financial Benefits to Officials

Many local government ethics codes define a conflict of interest as existing only when an official stands to receive a financial benefit from his or her action or inaction. But real and perceived conflicts exist even when there is no financial benefit to an official. Important examples include bene…

Local Government Practice September 11, 2009

An Attempt to Extend Legislative Immunity to Exclude Testimony and the Vagueness of "Regulated by the City"

A new argument has been made in the legislative immunity part of the case against a Baltimore council member who is now the mayor. In a memorandum to dismiss a new indictment (attached; see below), filed on September 8, the mayor has argued, on pages 3-10, that testimony by someone who attended eve…

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