Demoted Dean Files Claim Against Rio Hondo College : Court: He blew the whistle on irregularities in his department, prompting his removal, he says.

A former Rio Hondo College dean has filed a claim for damages against the college, saying he was demoted for blowing the whistle on irregularities in the automotive technology department.

The college’s board voted to remove Joe Cortez as dean of technology last March, just as the Sheriff’s Department was completing an investigation that Cortez helped initiate. Initially, the school tried to fire him outright, but later granted Cortez faculty tenure rights after he threatened legal action. He remains at Rio Hondo as an instructor.

In his claim, Cortez states that the college wanted to dismiss him because he raised questions about the practices of longtime Rio Hondo teachers. College officials deny any connection between the investigation and Cortez’s demotion.

“Cortez was reassigned totally upon the evaluation of his performance as a dean,” Rio Hondo attorney Melvin Peters said. Peters added that the college would have supported any attempt by Cortez to root out improprieties. “No one has any interest in trying to protect an instructor who is conducting illegal activities,” he said. Although the college did not discipline any instructors, officials did change operating procedures in the areas where Cortez raised questions.

Cortez said he contacted the sheriff after receiving a tip concerning auto body shop instructor Edward Yanes. The informant alleged that Yanes was running a private, for-profit auto body shop in the campus training facility, on school time, using school materials. Such work would not be permitted during class time unless it were part of a demonstration. Any money earned from the work would have to be deposited into school accounts, or it could be considered stolen, sheriff’s investigator Charles Gibbons said.

Cortez said he called in the Sheriff’s Department in July, 1990. At the college’s request, the Sheriff’s Department gave the administration regular updates. Last month, the district attorney declined to file charges on the grounds that there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges, Gibbons said.

Yanes, who helped found the auto body department in 1974, denies any wrongdoing. “I have no business of my own for which I use school facilities,” Yanes said. “I have done nothing that is not (according to) college procedure.”

Cortez’s claim also accuses James Hughes, a longtime automotive technology instructor, of “operating an illegal snack bar and not depositing or accounting for the money properly.” In an interview, Cortez said that Hughes ran a campus snack bar without proper authorization and could not produce records to show that its proceeds went into school accounts. Cortez said he turned over his information about the snack bar to school officials.

Cortez’s successor, Dick Whiteman, said he told Hughes to shut down the student snack bar. Whiteman said he is satisfied that Hughes did not intentionally violate college procedures.

Hughes could not be reached for comment either at the school or at his home.

Board member Ralph Pacheco said he could not comment on Cortez’s specific allegations, but said Hughes “is nationally recognized as a leader in his field.

“We have one of the best auto tech departments in the nation,” Pacheco added.

The college has taken no disciplinary action against either Yanes or Hughes, nor is any forthcoming, Assistant Supt. Sandra Yaap said.

As for Cortez, the college has the option of paying damages for the claim or denying it. If the college denies the claim, Cortez can file suit under whistle-blower protection statutes in Superior Court. Cortez’s claim does not specify a dollar amount in damages.

Cortez said that Yanes, Hughes and other faculty members asked the administration and board to remove him after he uncovered questionable activities. “I think I blew the whistle on too many wrong activities and on people who had access to too many people on the board. . . . I was given some hints that I should back off . . . I did not do that. I never did think it would go this far.”

According to several sources, Yanes and Hughes were among a number of faculty members who complained to the administration that Cortez was autocratic, inflexible and uncommunicative. They criticized both his hiring and scheduling practices.

Some college officials, who asked not to be named, said that the instructors had valid complaints about Cortez’s management. “It would appear he has become a disgruntled employee and has a vendetta against the individuals he feels were responsible for his demise,” one official said.

The furor has resulted in some changes at the auto body shop, Rio Hondo’s Whiteman said. Under the new policy, an accounting office receives payments for auto services.

In the past, instructors handled the money, which often created the appearance of impropriety, particularly since body shop records were incomplete, Whiteman said. The dean said he has talked to Yanes about improving record-keeping.