ORANGE : Appointment Was Legal, D.A. Finds

The City Council violated no law when it appointed Mark Murphy to the Planning Commission last September, the Orange County district attorney’s office has found.

The district attorney’s investigation, completed last month, began in October after a resident alleged that the council acted improperly when it appointed Murphy to a vacant seat.

Residents had complained that Murphy missed the deadline in applying for the Planning Commission spot and should not be eligible for the position.

City officials contended that Murphy’s resume was on file at City Hall, making him eligible for any appointment that arose. Following an investigation by the city attorney’s office, council members unanimously approved Murphy for the planning job.

The appointment came during the 1990 City Council campaign, and some residents said the position was given to Murphy as a reward for his work as campaign manager for Mayor Gene Beyer. Dale Rahn, the resident who filed the complaint with the district attorney, was managing the mayoral campaign of Robert Boice.

Murphy called Rahn’s complaint a “frivolous investigation for political reasons at taxpayers’ expense.”

“It’s unfortunate when (an investigation) is used for personal, political reasons rather than for what it’s intended,” Murphy said. “I’m glad it’s taken care of and it turned out as we all knew it would.”

Rahn said he was neither satisfied with nor surprised by the results of the investigation.

“The district attorney said they would only find out information if (those interviewed) were willing to talk and apparently no one is,” Rahn said.

Despite the results of the investigation, Rahn said he believes that his complaint can have a lasting effect on city officials.

“It serves to remind (public officials) that people are watching,” Rahn said. “It all comes down to accountability. (Public officials) are accountable to the citizens and sometimes they forget that.”