City Attorney, What’s Your Opinion on Anonymous Quote From ‘City Official’?

Editor’s note: The following is an open letter originally sent to La Mesa City Attorney Glenn Sabine.

To the editor:

To follow up on yesterday’s email, may I ask you about the following statement in _an article I found_ via La Mesa Patch?

Regarding the Village Merchants Association, which puts on the Car Show and Christmas in the Village among other events, this anonymous charge is made:

“People suspect a lot of side deals may be happening in these events,” said one city official, who asked not to be identified by name. “There’s really no way to know.”

Specifically, I’d like to know the city’s position and your professional opinion on:

1. What categories are encompassed by the term “city official”?  Is this term limited to elective positions, or would it also include career staff? Would members of advisory entities such as, for example, the Parking Commission, be considered “officials” in any sense? I know the Commission has by-laws requiring discretion.

2. Does the City of La Mesa have any policy or rules that govern leaks and anonymous leaks regarding pending business? If so, who is covered under these rules? If you can, please segregate along the groupings identified above.

3. Will you please offer your opinion as to whether such a statement, if proven false or offered maliciously, falls within the scope of employment or service? That is, should such a statement cause harm to the Merchants Association, would its utterer enjoy qualified immunity against any resulting damages or would he or she be potentially personally liable? Would the city’s insurance cover or would the city otherwise reimburse the speaker in this hypothetical?

Again, I understand your answer may be different depending on the nature of the “official,” so please break it down by category if you can.

4. The author of the article also makes the claim that “merchants serve as quasi-public servants (sic) in these [events].”

As you are aware, “quasi-public” is a term of art fraught with legal significance. Would you please offer your opinion as to whether, in what capacity, and at what times the La Mesa Village Merchants Association and any of its membership takes on a quasi-public character in the city’s eyes? Are there any protections or liabilities that would arise from such a characterization?

5. Does the city have a document retention policy and is a copy of that policy available?

Please also consider this letter as a request under the California Public Records Act for any documents, recordings or communications you use or discover in the course of drafting your answers. I am willing to pay reasonable costs to copy and would prefer electronic format where available.

Sincerely,

Bill Jaynes
All Things Bright and British, La Mesa