Newport PD Needs Outside Investigation : City Needs Third Party to Bring Credibility to Inquiry

Newport Beach City Manager Kevin J. Murphy seems sincere in saying he is anxious for his city to get quickly to the bottom of the explosive sexual-harassment allegations that now plague his affluent coastal city.

But it’s not clear at this point that the city can do simultaneously all that it must. That is, find out the truth of the charges, reassure its employees of its commitment to a work environment free of discrimination and defend itself in a lawsuit that has been brought by four women.

It would be wise for the city to distance itself from the efforts to find out what actually happened. The city therefore should consider turning the matter over to an outside agency or commission--perhaps a grand jury--for an independent investigation.

The women--records supervisor Mary Jane Ruetz, communications supervisor Margaret McInnis, police officer Cheryl Vlacilek, and fired police officer Rochell Maier--allege in an Orange County Superior Court lawsuit that they were sexually harassed with suggestive remarks and touching of their breasts and other parts of their bodies by Police Capt. Anthony Villa. The women also allege that their complaints about Villa were overlooked by his boss, Police Chief Arb Campbell. They are each asking for at least $200,000 in damages.

Villa and Campbell deny the allegations.

Reporting by The Times has demonstrated that Villa and Campbell are not just colleagues but also friends and partners in the ownership of a piece of land in Riverside County. That could complicate the city’s efforts to find out what actually happened.

Also, the city is self-insured. That means that the women, should they actually win damages from the city, would be paid out of the city treasury.

The attorney the city has hired for the initial investigation, Harold A. Bridges, has a good reputation for fairness and thoroughness in matters of this kind. But, in this case, it is as much the appearance of fairness as fairness itself that counts. And this much is evident to all: Bridges is in the city’s employ. It should be no surprise, then, that the women have not wanted to tell their stories to Bridges, fearing their accounts might end up jeopardizing their case.

Because the four women have filed a civil lawsuit, it is assumed that eventually a third party--a judge or jury in that case--will be reviewing all the facts to determine whether the women are owed damages. But the lawsuit could take many years to litigate.

Meanwhile, there is a pressing need for the city to calm its own forces and move beyond the circus atmosphere of this case. The first order of business is to assure city employees that harassment or discrimination of any kind--be it sexual, racial or whatever--will not be tolerated.

The situation presented by the women’s allegations provides a good example of why cities--and all government agencies or, for that matter, privately owned corporations--should have strong, clear policies against harassment that are enforced and well-known to all employees.

In addition, because of the seriousness of the charges, and the number of women who are alleging sexual harassment, the city should take a step back and open itself up to examination by an outside agency.

Some kind of independent inquiry is essential. Without it, some will be tempted, unfairly or otherwise, to conclude that the fox is guarding the henhouse.