RON DAVIS -- Through My Eyes

You have to wonder whether Fountain Valley Councilman Chuck Conlosh

hired Dr. Jack Kevorkian as his political consultant.

Conlosh, as an incumbent councilman, had a clear edge over anyone

running for his seat. But in August, for some suicidal reason, Chuck

decided to chuck a hand grenade, in the form of a letter, in the

direction of his fellow council members and the city administration. The

explosive letter, wrapped in a political flier, alleged that the city had

failed to investigate possible high-level wrongdoing by unspecified

officials -- possible wrongdoing that Conlosh says he brought to the

attention of city leaders several months earlier.

The shellshocked City Council and the administration had every right

to consider the written barrage to be a suggestion of a cover-up at worst

and indifference to possible wrongdoing at best.

Apparently, what Conlosh was referring to was an incident that

occurred in April during a trial that involved the city of Fountain

Valley and the city’s fire chief in a lawsuit filed by a city

firefighter.

A jury ruled unanimously in favor of the city and the chief, saving

the taxpayers a potential judgment involving hundreds of thousands of

dollars.

Apparently, Conlosh thought the city should have lost the case. He

felt he observed something during the final argument that smelled of

courtroom theatrics and which he believed prejudiced the firefighter’s

case against the city and the chief. According to the record, this

incident was brought to the judge’s attention, and the judge disagreed.

Moreover, it appears Conlosh’s version of the incident doesn’t square

with the court record.

Regardless, Conlosh asked three of the jurors to attend a City Council

meeting in May. I’ve read the transcript of the council meeting, and

other than expressing their opinions about the difficulty of sitting as

jurors, I read nothing in their statements to suggest they were

complaining about any misconduct by the city or the fire chief.

After the jurors’ comments to the council, Conlosh stated, “Perhaps I

would like to see the city investigate this matter to find out if those

concerns [of the three jurors] are true or not.”

This “perhaps” he’d like to see an investigation hardly rises to the

level of a demand for an investigation. Moreover, he was told by the city

attorney that even if it did, the council couldn’t legally act on the

request because the subject was not on the agenda. He was further advised

to place the matter on an agenda if he wanted council action. He did not.

His City Council colleagues and the administration had every right to

believe the matter had been dropped. In my view, it would be improper to

investigate “possible wrongdoings” without some credible evidence of

actual wrongdoing. Further, it’s beyond me how a city could begin such an

investigation at taxpayer expense without the subject being on the agenda

and approved by the City Council.

After sitting for almost four years on the City Council, Conlosh

certainly must have known that. Nonetheless, he decided to construct this

letter bomb accusing the City Council and city administration of failing

to act -- the kind of allegation, whether true or not, that finds a home

(perhaps a recreational vehicle home) in the hearts of some voters.

Public service is tough, and even under the best of circumstances the

public is generally suspicious of the conduct of virtually everyone

elected to public office. In my mind, this letter was a deliberate and

unwarranted attack on the City Council and the city administration solely

for political purposes.

A letter grenade designed to cause injury.

I don’t know if Conlosh has “loshed” it or has merely been conned.

Neither scenario is particularly pleasing. He suggests that he wants the

City Council and the city administration to be accountable. Of course,

that includes him, and I couldn’t agree more.

Having taken the time to write the letter, obviously Conlosh knew of

the content and the potential consequences as surely as one knows the

potential consequences of pulling the pin on a grenade and tossing it at

a particular audience.

I have to believe that Conlosh expected his comments to be as

explosive as a grenade. Grenades do indeed explode. But what Conlosh

forgot is that sometimes the intended victim tosses them back.

* RON DAVIS is a private attorney who lives in Huntington Beach. He

can be reached by e-mail at o7 [email protected]