No pay suspensions for code of conduct offences: Sarnia council

Political climate putting a chill on election nominations Bradley

Sarnia city council has continued its stance of not punishing its own for inappropriate behavior, given the political implications.

Against the recommendations of integrity commissioner Paul Watson, council voted three times Monday against docking councilor pay for code of conduct violations related to botched diversity training.

Instead, municipal leaders voted to receive and file Watson’s damning reports, essentially accepting them as written while taking no action.

Council did pass a separate motion from Coun. Mike Stark that seemed to call for the province to change the system, which currently requires municipalities to have integrity commissioners who enforce codes of conduct for councilors but leaves penalties for infractions up to councils to enforce.

“It’s been well-documented that this integrity commissioners act does not work and it is an act that pits councilors against one another,” Stark said. “It should not be used.”

Another Sarnia motion requesting provincial changes was passed in March.

Watson’s first report recommended suspending Coun. Bill Dennis’s pay for 90 days and Coun. Terry Burrell’s compensation for 60, based on “hostile” behavior from the counselors to KOJO Institute principal trainer Kike Ojo-Thompson during a diversity training session Watson said was meant to confront biases.

Ojo-Thompson, during the two-hour virtual training session, was discussing equality of outcomes near the end of the Nov. 15 meeting, Watson’s report stated. The discussion prompted Dennis to allege the trainer was teaching critical race theory and communism, Watson’s report noted.

Burrell alleged she was teaching Marxism, Watson’s report added.

“She was the recipient of what she describes as ‘visceral rage’” from Dennis and Burrell, Watson wrote while noting the trainer said she had never been subject “to this type of behavior” in 23 years of making presentations.

“It affected her so personally that she was shaken for hours after the meeting,” wrote Watson, noting the trainer said she was not presenting critical race theory, communism or Marxism during the session.

“At one point in the meeting, the trainer was so astonished by what she was hearing that she reacted with a look of astonishment and disbelief, at which point Coun. Burrell made a comment to the trainer to the effect of ‘take that smirk off your face like you think we are a bunch of dirty white men,’” the report stated. Burrell denies making the comment, the report noted, but other witnesses recall it.

Quotes are not exact since there is no recording of the meeting, Watson acknowledged.

“What is certain, however, is that the pushback by Coun. Dennis and Coun. Burrell was not friendly debate. He was hostile and the trainer felt threatened and intimidated.”

As part of Watson’s investigation, Burrell and Dennis both told the integrity commissioner they were expressing their opinions, but doing so during a training session about building empathy for people in different circumstances was inappropriate, the integrity commissioner said.

Dennis also made social media posts afterwards that elicited threatening comments against the trainer, Watson’s report added.

“The trainer has done nothing that would justify this negative attention that has left her fearing for the safety of herself and her family,” the report stated.

Watson found both councilors were hostile to the councilor at the point of making her feel unsafe, and used words, phrases or expressions abusive or insulting to a member of the public. Their actions also lacked decorum, he found.

Dennis did not comment on the findings during Monday’s council meeting. He responded later by text to a phone call requesting comment.

“I believe in total and full equality,” his text stated. “I do not support any form of racism at all. I will always have the courage to stand up for what I believe is right and wrong. I look forward to putting this behind us and moving on with the important work for the city.”

Burrell, who declared a conflict and didn’t vote on any of the integrity commissioner reports, said he found “this whole process a little weird” since the process doesn’t provide an opportunity to “defend yourself” or cross-examine witnesses.

He said he also thought Watson should have interviewed more councilors.

“It is a bit difficult to swallow when you can’t defend yourself,” he said.

Watson said he interviewed three councilors, members of city staff and the trainer during his investigation.

Both Dennis and Burrell were given multiple opportunities to respond to allegations, he said, including to a draft report.

All findings are based on a balance of probabilities, he added.

count. Dave Boushy called Dennis and Burrell “fine people, and they’re my friends.”

The disclosure of what they said “did not shine a good thing on the community … but all I want to say is I have nothing but regard for those two people.”

count. Brian White, chairing this portion of the meeting in Mayor Mike Bradley’s absence because of acting Mayor Burrell’s conflict, called for measured and concise comments from all involved.

“Our reputation as a community has taken a bit of a hit over the last number of months … let’s try and not wander off on a tangent for fear of risking further damage,” he said.

He also called the training necessary: ​​“We do have a responsibility to lead and to understand all of the people we represent in the community.”

count. Nathan Colquhoun was the subject of the other two investigations in the wake of the training session.

In oneWatson found Colquhoun spoke disrespectfully towards Dennis during a separate code of conduct violation finding against Dennis in early February.

On Monday, Dennis described that meeting as heated and said he forgave Colquhoun.

“Not that (Colquhoun) is begging for my forgiveness, but … we’re leaders and, if we can show our city that we can rise above petty differences and we can forgive people, then that’s doing the community a service.”

Colquhoun apologized and acknowledged the public meeting wasn’t an appropriate place for his remarks.

“Thank you Bill for being the bigger man, and I’m glad we can move past this,” Colquhoun said.

Colquhoun was also found to have breached closed-meeting confidentiality when he posted details online of the KOJO training session and aa subsequent Dec.13 council discussion about whether to go public with those details. The councilor also released a letter from KOJO to Sarnia’s top administrator, Chris Carter, referencing “undisrupted, uncorrected, and unabated hostility” from unidentified council members.

“If I had the authority to recommend that Coun. Colquhoun be removed from office, I would,” wrote Watson, instead recommending a 90-day pay suspension and that Colquhoun be removed from any advisory committees or local boards for breaking the “cardinal rule” of closed-meeting confidentiality. The integrity commission also recommended the city somehow protect against Colquhoun releasing further confidential information.

Releasing the information harmed the City of Sarnia’s reputation, made Ojo-Thompson “the target of negative social media attacks” and undermined trust, Watson wrote.

“There are no words from myself as (integrity commissioner) that would be strong enough to condemn this behavior,” he said, calling it “unthinkable.”

Watson said Colquhoun released the information “for a personal political agenda without concern for the consequences,” and did so under the guise of being a whistleblower and acting in the public’s best interest.

“That is undeniably 100 per cent wrong,” Watson wrote. “The rules relating to confidentiality are in place for very important reasons. Primarily, they support the legally protected privacy rights of individuals, and they protect the City of Sarnia when dealing with any number of legally recognized confidentiality maters.”

White and Stark echoed Watson during their comments.

“This breach, in my view, is a serious, serious contravention of what we councilors believe to be the trustworthiness of each other,” said Stark, adding “it’s far beyond what I consider to be acceptable.”

White noted Colquhoun had previously admitted to contravening the code.

Dennis and Stark respectively asked for the reports about Colquhoun to be received and filed. Colquhoun asked for the report about Dennis and Burrell to be received and filed.

“To be consistent … receive and file is appropriate,” Stark said.

All but one vote was unanimous.

Council voted 4-2 to receive and file the report on Colquhoun breaching confidentiality. Boushy and Coun. George Vandenberg were opposed.

Colquhoun, who has repeatedly called the integrity commissioner process flawed while making confidential complaints to the integrity commissioner against him public – said he had permission to release the KOJO letter from the person who wrote it, albeit not from the city.

“And I didn’t think that the bureaucratic laws preventing that letter from going to the public should have stopped it,” he said, “but I agree with Coun. Stark and Coun. White that absolutely it was a breach of what we all hold dear in a democratic and transparent government.”

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