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Mayor Feels the Heat in Council Stew : Pomona: One councilman jumped on 2 police officers, which prompted the mayor to jump on the councilman, which prompted another councilman and former ally to jump with both feet on the mayor.

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TIMES STAFF WRITER

After moving to censure Councilman C. L. (Clay) Bryant for his verbal attacks on police officers, Pomona Mayor Donna Smith became the object of a barrage of criticism herself at this week’s council meeting, with her sometimes political ally, Councilman Mark A. T. Nymeyer, blaming her for the city’s turmoil.

Nymeyer said Smith’s censure motion was “nothing more than one more indication of her personal vindictiveness and animosity toward Councilman Bryant and her total inability to lead this city and this City Council in any constructive direction.”

In a nine-page written statement, Nymeyer accused Smith of lying when she said the council fired Police Chief Richard M. Tefank on Oct. 17 because he would not carry out its instruction to fire seven officers on a hit list.

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Nymeyer, who initiated the dismissal of Tefank, said Smith’s claim that officers have been targeted for termination by the council “was not only untrue, it had the effect of yelling ‘fire!’ in a crowded theater. Mayor Smith bears the total political responsibility for the public outrage at the prospect of political interference in the day-to-day operation of Pomona’s Police Department.”

Smith, who was the only council member to vote against Tefank’s dismissal, said little in her own defense at the council meeting. But she reiterated afterward that council members had a list of officers they wanted fired when they met in closed session to discuss the firing of Tefank. “The names were stated in closed session,” she said.

Bryant said in an interview that Nymeyer wanted Tefank to dismiss the department’s three police captains. In addition, Bryant has said he would like to see the dismissal of two other officers.

But other council members insisted that there is no hit list. Councilman Tomas Ursua said: “I was outraged at the lies that began to hit the press (after Tefank was fired) about the so-called hit list. No such thing exists.”

The censure motion against Bryant was prompted by letters sent to council members by Assemblyman Charles Bader (R-Pomona) expressing outrage over what he described as Bryant’s “personal attacks on individual police officers.”

Bader referred to Bryant’s disclosure at a council meeting Oct. 30 that Raul Camargo, president of the Pomona Police Officers Assn., had been seeing a psychiatrist at a cost of $20,450 to the city. Bryant labeled Camargo “a psychiatric case.”

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Members of the police officers association also claim that Bryant told them that he would like to see Sgt. Gary Elofson “killed, disemboweled and hung.” Bryant has denied making that statement but he says he would like to see Elofson fired because of an incident several years ago when Elofson arrested him for drunk driving. The charge was dropped after a blood alcohol test showed that Bryant was not drunk, although he was found guilty of running a stop sign and speeding.

Bryant also disclosed at a council meeting that Camargo and an unnamed sergeant, later identified as Elofson, had been accused of sexual harassment and lewd contact by a woman who had been fired as a police crime analyst.

Bader, a former Pomona mayor, asked the council to publicly censure Bryant, saying that “silence on this matter would amount to your support and endorsement of his attacks.”

Nymeyer, who is running for the Republican nomination to succeed Bader in the Assembly, accused Bader and his staff of proposing censure for political reasons. Bader, who is giving up his Assembly seat to run for the state Senate, has endorsed his aide, Jim Brulte, as his successor.

In his written statement, Nymeyer said Brulte was trying to capitalize on the police issue for political gain. “The stench of rotten politics on the part of Bader’s staff is very strong, and I am amazed that Chuck Bader allows himself to be sucked into this debate,” he said.

Bader rejected Nymeyer’s assertion that he had called for Bryant’s censure as a political move. He said he was simply outraged that Bryant had disclosed confidential medical information about a police officer and sought to defend the department against attack. He said “Pomona is a tough town to police” and officers deserve support, not criticism.

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Bryant denied that he disclosed anything that wasn’t in public records or common knowledge in the Police Department. “I didn’t violate anyone’s confidential file. I didn’t look in anyone’s personnel folder. . . . The object was simply (to give the) public information about what was happening in your city with your money.”

After a closed session that ended at about 2 a.m. Tuesday, the council voted 3 to 1, with Smith dissenting and Bryant abstaining, to provide an attorney and pay any costs incurred by Bryant in the lawsuit that has been filed against the city and Bryant in federal court by Elofson and Camargo.

The two officers allege that their civil rights were violated by Bryant’s disclosures.

Smith said she voted against the city’s providing an attorney or paying any judgment against Bryant “because he needs to be responsible for his own actions.”

The city will pay for an attorney to represent itself and for one to represent Bryant.

Smith charged that Nymeyer concentrated his criticism on her because she had endorsed Brulte over him for the Assembly. Although she and Nymeyer have voted together on a number of major issues, including opposition to the firing in May of A. J. Wilson as city administrator, they have been at odds on other matters.

Nymeyer not only criticized Smith but also Bryant, Elofson, Camargo and other council members for making statements that he called unprofessional.

Agreeing, Councilwoman Nell Soto said: “Many of us have acted unprofessionally in the things we have said. But I think it comes from the frustration of having to listen to some of the distortions and prevarications that have been made on the part of the mayor.”

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Most of the audience in the crowded council chamber vocally supported Bryant and criticized the censure motion as an outgrowth of the recall campaign under way against Bryant.

One resident, Debra Hernandez, said Bryant has taken the lead in exposing the problems that face Pomona.

“What I would like someone to tell us,” she said, “is who let the city get this way in the first place? Who let the drugs and the gang activity get so disproportionate to our sister communities? We would appreciate somebody telling us who those people are so that we might publicly censure them instead of those who are trying to clean up this mess.”

But another resident, James Oberhofer, said Bryant should be censured for making comments that exposed the city to a lawsuit. He added that what Bryant has done is typical of the entire council.

“Everybody could be censured,” he said. “Just sitting back here and listening to it, it’s the greatest show in town. . . . What a farce.”

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