Coronado Councilman Denies Charge : Woman Says Official Wanted Sex for Vote

Bonni Marie Kinosian was delighted when Coronado City Councilman William Adams devoted his personal time on a Sunday afternoon last May to tour the old Victorian house she had refurbished and hoped to convert into a small bed-and-breakfast inn.

But when Adams left 4 1/2 hours later, Kinosian no longer appreciated the visit.

In a complaint filed with the Coronado Police Department, Kinosian alleged that Councilman Adams offered to vote in favor of a bed-and-breakfast ordinance that she had requested if Kinosian would “go to bed” with him.

Adams, a council member for 13 years, said in an interview that Kinosian misunderstood his comments during the May 17 tour. He denied making some statements alleged by Kinosian and said others were taken out of context.

Will Abstain

However, Adams said he will abstain from any future votes specifically on Kinosian’s project to avoid the appearance of unfairness.

The district attorney’s office launched an investigation in May and determined there was not enough evidence to prosecute Adams for offering to receive a bribe, a district attorney’s spokeswoman said.

Kinosian, who runs Bonni Marie Dance Studio on the first floor of her Victorian in Coronado’s business district, said a district attorney’s investigator told her that Adams was kidding when he made his remarks and they were intended as a joke. But Kinosian does not regard the incident as a laughing matter.

“I think I have a healthy sense of humor,” Kinosian said. “There was nothing there that was funny.”

Women Were Upset

In an interview, Adams acknowledged that Kinosian’s allegations are not the first time that he has received complaints about sexual harassment. Earlier this year, two women who work at Coronado City Hall told City Manager Ray Silver they were upset about the way Adams treated them in the office.

Adams said that Silver told him his statements were inappropriate, and he apologized to the women for remarks that included calling them “pretty girls.”

Silver said he did not want to comment.

“I’ve got the screwiest personality,” Adams said. “I say a lot of things jokingly to a lot of people . . . Obviously, Bonni and I had a tremendous misunderstanding about the 4 1/2 hours we talked.”

Kinosian’s accusations have become well-known in political circles in Coronado.

Touchy Issue

“It’s a very touchy issue for all of our members,” said Frank Marquez, president of the Coronado Business Assn. “From what I understand, (Adams) has compromised his credibility as a public official and should step down.”

Councilwoman Mary Herron said: “I think it is unfortunate for the alleged victims and the city if all this has occurred because I think it is very damaging. I’m saddened by that.”

Last month, Adams successfully pushed for a special election in November to let Coronado residents decide whether the city should license bed-and-breakfast inns. If Adams had joined council members Robert Odiorne and Herron in supporting a bed-and-breakfast ordinance, the issue would have passed, 3-2, and Kinosian would be free to rent two small rooms in the attic of her 93-year-old Victorian.

In some California cities, entrepreneurs are encouraged to convert historic homes into bed-and-breakfast inns as an alternative to building hotels. But in Coronado, where residents turn up their noses at new waves of tourists, a proposal to bring two bed-and-breakfast inns per year to the quiet peninsula is controversial.

Caught in Middle

Caught in the middle of the cross fire is Kinosian, a professional dancer whose first leap into Coronado politics has left her emotionally devastated. In May, she set out to acquaint each of the five council members with the Victorian and all the hard work that went into converting the house from a dilapidated, low-income housing unit to an impressive historic landmark.

During a private tour of the house on May 17, Kinosian told police, she felt “very uncomfortable” and “threatened” by repeated remarks and sexual advances she alleged that Adams made. At one point during the meeting, according to Kinosian, Adams told her she was attractive and said he was “hoping to get into your pants.”

Adams said that Kinosian misunderstood him. “I may have said, ‘Any man would be glad to be married to you and get in your pants,’ ” Adams said.

At the end of the meeting, Kinosian said, she asked Adams if he would keep an open mind when the bed-and-breakfast issue came before the council on May 19.

“Well, there’s another way you’ll get a ‘yes’ vote from me, too,” Adams is alleged to have responded. “We could go upstairs and then you’d get one.”

Denied Statement

Adams denied making the statement, though he said he often has made the same remark to friends and acquaintances. Both Adams and Kinosian attend Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Coronado.

Kinosian said she is still furious at Adams, particularly because he continues to speak out against her attempt to get the city to adopt a bed-and-breakfast ordinance.

“Adams is not without bias and he can’t possibly be objective, in my opinion,” she said.

Adams said he will not participate in any council decisions dealing with Kinosian’s property. But, calling the debate over bed-and-breakfast inns “a major controversy” in Coronado, Adams said he will continue to vote on the larger issue.

“When she applies for a special-use permit, I would step down,” Adams said. “Obviously, she is pretty upset at me and would feel I would not give her a fair hearing on her special use permit.”

Adams, 52, who works as a civilian mathematician for the Navy in Coronado, is no stranger to controversy. He openly acknowledges to friends and political acquaintances that he is “uncouth” and has had running battles with constituents and his fellow council members.

Three years ago, Adams encouraged neophyte politician R.H. Dorman in his bid for mayor. Dorman won his election and the two were political allies. But earlier this year Adams and Dorman, who were neighbors on Pomona Street, became involved in an angry dispute when Mark Adams, the councilman’s teen-age son, played drums.

The noise dispute brought the police to the scene dozens of times, led to the arrest of Mark Adams and a review of the case by the district attorney’s office, which declined to prosecute.

Dorman, who met with Kinosian after Adams made the alleged comments, said he spoke with Adams before the May 19 council meeting and suggested that Adams abstain from voting or participating in Kinosian’s request for a bed-and-breakfast ordinance.

Missed Talk

Adams said he missed Kinosian’s address to the council because he had a prior engagement. Adams said he could not recall the mayor urging him to abstain until the complaint was investigated by the district attorney.

Dorman said he had no comment on Kinosian’s complaint against Adams.

“I’m staying strictly out of it,” Dorman said.

Adams said he believes that powerful lobbyists in Coronado who want to bring bed-and-breakfast inns to the city are using Kinosian’s allegations in an attempt to bar him from voting on the issue.

“There are a lot of people who can make a lot of money having bed-and-breakfast inns,” Adams said. “If Bonni became associated with these types of people, they can probably do anything possible to make sure I can’t vote on it. I think she is being used and doesn’t know it. She is probably relatively naive in political circles.”

Recounted Details

Kinosian recounted details of her May 17 encounter with Adams during a lengthy interview Tuesday at her house.

Kinosian said she called Adams at home that Sunday to talk about her request that the city adopt a bed-and-breakfast ordinance at its meeting the following Tuesday. She said that Adams seemed to be very interested and told her he wanted to come by and see the house.

When she greeted Adams at the door that afternoon, he said, “Hello, pretty girl.” Kinosian said she initially took the remark as a compliment, but Adams used the term “pretty girl” so frequently over the next four hours that she began to feel uncomfortable.

Adams told Kinosian that he paid her a visit for three reasons--she was an attractive woman, she was respected in the community, and he wanted to solicit her support for next year’s council election.

Kinosian said that during a tour of the house, Adams gazed at a painting of a nude woman bathing in a creek and told Kinosian, “You’ve got a body like this.”

Adams then began to ask questions about Kinosian’s personal life and inquire why she had never married. At one point, he reputedly said, “You’ve deprived some man. I don’t know if I’m going to stay married very long.”

Adams then poured himself several glasses of wine and continued to make remarks that Kinosian thought were suggestive and that she tried to ignore. Kinosian said she did not drink any alcohol.

Called Her Attractive

Kinosian said that before Adams helped himself to more wine, he told her, “If you’re not going to go to bed with me I may as well have another glass of wine.”

When Adams told her how attractive she was, Kinosian said, she told him flatly, “I don’t fool around.”

Adams was reported to have replied, “I’m sorry to hear that. I was really hoping to get into your pants.”

Kinosian said she kept trying to think of polite ways to get Adams to leave her house. After more than four hours, she said, he finally began to leave. It was then that Adams suggested that Kinosian could get his vote by going to bed with him, she said.

“I wanted to tell Adams to stick it in his ear,” Kinosian said. “I would have to anyone else under the circumstances. What makes me so angry is that I let myself be intimidated knowing his vote could have affected the outcome of my request. He is in a powerful position. That’s what makes it so wrong with me.”

Adams provided a different version of the meeting.

The veteran councilman said Kinosian insisted that he drop by to see her house. He said he was watching a sporting event with his son and did not want to interrupt his Sunday afternoon, but finally relented because he could not get Kinosian off the telephone.

Adams confirmed that he spent more than four hours at Kinosian’s house and consumed several glasses of wine. Adams also acknowledged that he used the term “pretty girl” numerous times.

“All women are beautiful in my vocabulary,” he said. “That is the way I talk to people.”

When they sat down at the kitchen table, Adams said, Kinosian began to talk about the reasons she had never married.

“We were very personal,” Adams said. “We talked about each other’s problems . . . I praised her and said she was a very attractive person and would be a very desirable wife and mother . . . .

“I may have said, ‘Any man would be glad to be married to you and get in your pants.’ ”

Adams said he never suggested to Kinosian that she could get his vote by going upstairs to bed.

“No way,” Adams said, “although I’ve used that terminology jokingly with other people. She may have heard me talk at some social functions where I have mentioned that to other people as a joke. But I never made that to her.”

Adams praised Kinosian as “a tough person” who has worked hard to upgrade her Victorian and make her dance studio successful.

“This is a trait us male chauvinists like to see in ourselves,” Adams said. “I don’t see it too often in women.”

Adams, who said he thought he left his meeting with Kinosian as a good friend, said he has learned a valuable lesson from the visit.

“It’ll be a cold day in hell before I ever go to a single woman’s house alone again,” he said.