Westin Probe Is Dragging, Trustee Says

A Ventura County Community College District trustee accused his colleagues Thursday of dragging their feet on an investigation into allegations of malfeasance and misappropriation of public funds by suspended Chancellor Philip Westin.

The five elected trustees hired Los Angeles attorney Mary Dowell on July 25 to conduct an investigation and advise them on how to proceed against Westin, who has been harshly criticized for spending $119,000 in taxpayer money since 1998 on expensive meals, software equipment and car repairs.

He was placed on paid administrative leave July 18 for an indefinite period to give Dowell time to review his spending, along with allegations of possible criminal violations contained in a lawsuit filed in Ventura County Superior Court on behalf of taxpayers.

Since then, nothing has occurred, according to trustee John Tallman, a longtime Westin critic.

“We have yet to interview a person and locate a document,” Tallman said Thursday.

Tallman said a majority of the board does not want a thorough investigation conducted. Board President Norman Nagel and Vice President Art Hernandez comprise a two-member subcommittee that usually communicates with Dowell, of the law firm Liebert Cassidy Whitmore, Tallman said.

“It’s not her [Dowell’s] fault,” Tallman said. “I would say the firm would do whatever the board asked.”

Dowell has communicated with the board in person and in writing, Tallman said, but he would not divulge the nature of those discussions. Dowell was retained by the board because some trustees believe the district’s general counsel, Jack Lipton, has developed too close a relationship with Westin to be impartial.

Dowell was on vacation and unavailable for comment.

But most of the other board members disputed Tallman’s viewpoint.

“We have hired a law firm and they’re looking into the matter with Westin,” trustee Bob Gonzales said Thursday. “It’s my belief an investigation is being conducted.”

“Yes, there’s an investigation,” trustee Hernandez said. “It’s not going as quickly as we’d like, but it’s moving forward. We’re trying to do as complete and thorough a job as we can, so that if we go to court, it holds up. You’re going to see that things are going to move a lot quicker now.”

Nagel said Dowell is reviewing the taxpayer lawsuit and an analysis of Westin’s expenses presented to the board last spring. by the Camarillo law firm Wood & Bender. Nagel said he does not believe the attorney had begun to interview employees or possible witnesses about the allegations contained in the taxpayer lawsuit, such as Westin reportedly allowing the district to apply for a FEMA grant when there wasn’t an emergency.

“To the best of my knowledge, they haven’t talked to anyone,” Nagel said.

The board met privately for an hour Thursday to discuss a threat Westin made Aug. 15 to file a lawsuit if the board did not resolve his employment status quickly. The board did not reach a decision nor take any action.

“I think there was some progress,” Tallman said.

Acting Chancellor Jim Walker said Westin had threatened to sue the district during a face-to-face meeting in his office two weeks ago. “Phil Westin stated that he would proceed with litigation if the Board did not resolve his issues soon,” Walker wrote in a one-sentence memo that prompted Thursday’s special meeting.

During the public comment period held before the trustees adjourned to closed session, several residents told the board they were fed up with the secrecy surrounding Westin’s employment status and did not want the board considering a plan to settle with Westin by buying out his $203,000-a-year contract.

“Why hasn’t the board provided information about the investigation?” said Earline Randall of Santa Paula. “I think the board is caving in to Westin. Let him sue.”

“He’s nothing but a bully,” said Thousand Oaks resident Linda Van Dolsen, who is running for a seat on the board in November to replace Nagel. “If lack of integrity were a crime, he [Westin] would have been put away a long time ago. If he wants to sue, fine.”

Westin has notified the board he would agree to resign if he receives 18 months’ salary, or $305,000, and lifetime health benefits, among other concessions. He also wants to be allowed to look for another job while retaining the title of chancellor during that period.

Some trustees have speculated it would be less expensive to buy out Westin’s two-year contract than face possible litigation if they fired him. Under his contract, the board can fire him for breaking the law or violating district policy.

The law firm that filed the lawsuit on behalf of county taxpayers contends Westin’s contract should be rescinded because it was approved in May in violation of the state’s open meetings law, known as the Brown Act.

The board is accused of failing to properly notify the public that trustees planned to consider increasing Westin’s salary in a closed meeting.