Edgerly to stay on job until end of July (Oakland CA Corruption)

The Oakland Tribune ^ | 06/24/2008 | Kelly Rayburn

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OAKLAND — Mayor Ron Dellums announced Tuesday that City Administrator Deborah Edgerly will be allowed to stay at her post until July 31, even as she faces increasing criticism for possibly interfering with a police investigation.

Dellums and Edgerly said that under a months-old agreement, Edgerly will retire July 31. Dellums said Edgerly's retirement has nothing to do with recent allegations that she intervened on behalf of a nephew, William Lovan, 27, in the police department's ongoing investigation of the Acorn gang of West Oakland.

"What's important is that this is about the announcement of a decision that was made several months ago," Dellums said at a news conference at City Hall. "This is not a reaction to anything. This is progression from a decision that was made many months ago."

But sources said federal investigators are exploring whether Edgerly broke the law by interfering with an ongoing police investigation. Law enforcement officials are trying to determine if Edgerly tipped off her nephew, a suspected gang member, about the police work, sources said.

Edgerly's attorney, Doron Weinberg, said Tuesday that he was not aware of a criminal investigation.

"We don't know what is in store," Weinberg said. "We know that on Friday and at the end of last week there were a lot of wild rumors going around."

Edgerly could not be reached by telephone Tuesday evening.

Weinberg said that he and Edgerly met with Dellums and City Attorney John Russo before Tuesday afternoon's news conference. Edgerly said she'll fulfill the role of city administrator in her remaining time.

"I just want to make it clear," she said, "that the understanding the mayor and I have, so that there's no misconceptions, I am the city administrator with all the duties and responsibilities that come with being the city administrator."

However, the police department will report directly to Dellums to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest as the allegations against Edgerly are investigated.

Both Edgerly and Dellums said a search for a replacement city administrator will begin soon. Details about Edgerly's retirement package were not available.

Neither Dellums nor Edgerly fielded questions or addressed the allegations at the news conference.

"The press conference speaks for itself," Dellums said, leaving the room and adding, "That's what it is."

Allegations of possible interference were first aired publicly when police released a report June 18 revealing that Edgerly appeared June 7 at 1200 Market St., where officers were preparing to tow a car driven by Lovan, who is a city employee. Police said a gun was visible inside the car.

Edgerly asked why the car was being towed, police said. At one point, she told officers she was calling Assistant Police Chief Howard Jordan and that she would be contacting Internal Affairs about the matter, police said. Law enforcement sources familiar with the incident said police felt her presence was an attempt to influence or intimidate the officers there.

Sources said that after the June 7 incident, Lovan told Acorn gang leader Mark Anthony Candler, 34, in a tapped telephone conversation that he heard from someone in a position of authority that they needed to stop using their phones.

Edgerly's name was never used in any of the conversations, the sources said.

But law enforcement officials are trying to determine if Edgerly may have alerted Lovan about the investigation after the June 7 incident, sources said.

The two-month police investigation into the Acorn gang culminated June 17 when 34 suspected gang members, including Lovan, were arrested in raids across the East Bay.

Two City Council members, meanwhile, said they have been repeatedly frustrated in the past few weeks about the lack of information they are receiving from the mayor's office.

"If the allegations about interfering in a criminal investigation are true, then (Edgerly) should not continue to be the city administrator," said Councilwoman Patricia Kernighan. "But the council doesn't know if that is true or not, because nobody is sharing that information with us."

Councilman Larry Reid agreed the information flow has been poor.

"We've been totally out of the loop," he said. "At some point, it would be nice if the council got briefed on all the issues. I think there's a sense of all of us being frustrated."

At the same time, he said he had confidence in Edgerly to do the job.

"I do have faith in her being the city administrator until she retires," he said. "I've had faith in her since Jerry Brown appointed her to that position."

Brown, former Oakland mayor, appointed Edgerly in 2003 as interim city manager and made the appointment permanent in January 2004. The city later switched to a city administrator form of government.

Edgerly is the city's top paid nonsworn employee, earning $254,105 in the 2006-07 fiscal year.

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"I've had faith in her since Jerry Brown appointed her to that position."

Brown, former Oakland mayor, appointed Edgerly in 2003 as interim city manager and made the appointment permanent in January 2004.

Bwahhaha! Moonbeam, (Now the AG of CA), appoints a affirmitave action "figure" that has gang ties.

"That's right, you old fool commie, I'm retiring! Get it fool? If not, my nefew's boys will pop a cap in yo ass and dump you in the estuary, sucker. "

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Edgerly is the city's top paid nonsworn employee, earning $254,105 in the 2006-07 fiscal year.

Geez... no wonder her gang member nephew decided to become a city employee.

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Illustrates why Democrat police departments cannot possibly fight crime. Way too much corruption.

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Top Oakland official put on leave

By Kelly Rayburn, Staff Writer
Contra Costa Times

Article Created:06/27/2008 02:29:50 PM PDT

OAKLAND — Mayor Ron Dellums placed City Administrator Deborah Edgerly on paid administrative leave until her July 31 retirement date Friday amid allegations Edgerly interfered with a police investigation.

Dellums' move came just three days after he joined Edgerly at a City Hall news conference to announce that Edgerly would be allowed to serve through the end of July, as the two had previously agreed, even as Edgerly faced mounting criticism.

Dan Lindheim, the city's Community and Economic Development Agency director and a close adviser to Dellums, will take over as acting city administrator.

Sources said that since Tuesday's new conference Dellums and Edgerly squabbled over the details of one condition of their agreement. That condition: that Edgerly would not have authority over the Police Department due to a possible conflict of interest.

Dellums wanted the police department to report directly to Lindheim, sources said, while Edgerly wanted police to report to Cheryl Thompson, the assistant city administrator who was Edgerly's closest City Hall adviser.

A letter Dellums sent Edgerly Friday said he made the decision regrettably.

"I did not want to have to exercise this option knowing that given the present environment people would interpret this as a judgment of guilt," he wrote. "I have assiduously stood in a posture of non-judgment, but delay in this matter will only further inflame this situation."

Edgerly could no be reached immediately for comment. She will continue to draw her $260,457-a-year salary through July 31, but will have no authority at City Hall.

City Attorney John Russo released the following statement: "Given the circumstances, and given the nature of the allegations confronting Mrs. Edgerly, placing her on administrative leave with pay is the simplest and most legally prudent course for the city to follow."

City Auditor Courtney Ruby, meantime, released a statement before Edgerly was put on leave saying she had "serious concerns that the administrator who is under investigation continues to have access to city assets."

In a letter she wrote Dellums dated Thursday she advised that, "the moment you become aware of an employee, at any level in the City of Oakland, is under investigation for felonious or other serious criminal actions, that employee should be immediately placed on administrative leave."

Federal investigators are trying to determine if Edgerly broke the law by tipping off her nephew about law enforcement's ongoing investigation of the West Oakland's notorious Acorn gang, sources said. Sources said she may have let him know about the police work following a June 7 incident where officers said they found a gun in a car driven by the nephew, William Lovan, 27.

Lovan works for the city as a parking meter repairman and is suspected to be a member of the Acorn gang.

Police learned about the gun June 7 through a monitored telephone conversation between Lovan and the gang's suspected leader Mark Anthony Candler, sources said.

The allegations of interference first came to light last week when police released a report revealing that Edgerly showed up on the scene at 1200 Market St. Edgerly asked why the car was being towed, police said. At one point, she said she was phoning Assistant Police Chief Howard Jordan and would be contacting Internal Affairs over the matter.

Edgerly has refused to discuss the allegations other than releasing a statement June 20 saying that press stories and rumors about her alleged role were "shocking" and "unfounded."

Edgerly, 56, was first appointed to her post on an interim basis in 2003 before taking over permanently in 2004.