OXNARD : Council Cleared on 2 Meeting Law Charges

The district attorney’s office has cleared members of the Oxnard City Council of allegations that they violated state law by holding secret meetings twice in the last five months.

However, special Assistant Dist. Atty. Donald D. Coleman said he is still investigating allegations that the entire council violated state open meeting laws on a third occasion in August.

After interviewing city officials about the allegations, Coleman said he was unable to find enough evidence to prove there were violations of the Brown Act, the state’s open meeting law.

The first allegation that Coleman cleared was filed in May by council candidate Eleanor Branthoover, president of the city’s Inter-Neighborhood Council. She asked the district attorney to investigate a possible violation by three council members during a meeting to discuss a 77-acre development near Oxnard Boulevard and Gonzales Road.

Branthoover told the district attorney that she suspected the council members discussed the matter in a private conference room during a recess because the council was unable to reach consensus until after it returned from the recess.

The second alleged violation that Coleman cleared was filed last month by Scott Bollinger, a mayoral candidate in the Nov. 6 election.

Bollinger asked the district attorney to investigate campaign literature distributed by Mayor Nao Takasugi, which suggested that three council members had been holding illegal secret meetings.

Coleman said he interviewed Takasugi and his campaign consultant, John Davies, and found that neither could provide substantial evidence to prove the allegations.

Coleman said he is still investigating whether the City Council violated the Brown Act when it met in closed session to modify a development agreement it adopted in 1988.

City Atty. Gary Gillig has said he approved the meeting and that it did not violate the Brown Act.

He suggested that he and the district attorney interpret the law differently.