In Part One we outlined how the taxpayers came to pay for Former CUSD Trustee Lynn Hatton-Hodson’s conflict of interest non-disclosure legal defense. In Part Two we find CUSD is blocking the public’s access to what the taxpayer dollars were spent for and a long list of serious unanswered questions.
Even More Taxpayer Education Dollars to The Olson Law Firm and the Blocked Entries of the Descriptions of Services
In December the Board authorized a $10,000 increase in the allowed cost for the Olson firm (for total legal fees of $25,000.00). [12-6-16 More Money for Olson Authorization]. Then in February 2017 the FPPC closed its file. The Olson firm did not submit another invoice to CUSD until April 30, 2017 for $937.50. When CUSD finally disclosed this invoice in late July (after several requests by CPC) it contained the similar redactions as in the 10/31/16 invoice. [4-30-17 Olson Invoice]
As an attorney myself I understand and value the need for the attorney client communication privilege. However in this case we have taxpayer funds being spent for the legal defense of a financial disclosure filing which is normally privately funded by the politician themselves. Therefore it would be proper for the taxpayers to know what they received for their money. CUSD could waive the Attorney Client Privilege and give us un-redacted invoices. But it has refused to do so.
Just What Did the Olson Firm Do For The Money?
With all of the Olson’s firm’s billing activity as of October 31, 2016 we would expect there to be letters and e-mails going back and forth between the Olson firm and the FPPC.
But in the responses to CPC by CUSD and the FPPC not one letter or e-mail was apparently exchanged between the Olson firm and the FPPC. Not. One. Letter. Or. E-mail. Nothing! And none between the FPPC and the Orbach or Werksman firms either. The FPPC advised me that if they had “phone notes” of any conversations with the Olson firm, those would have been turned over in response to our Public Records Act request. None were disclosed.
Serious Questions Remain
So after obtaining everything in writing from CUSD (and the FPPC) that they would disclose, many serious questions remain:
Why are there be no written communications or telephone notes of conversations between the Olson law firm and the FPPC?
Why would the Olson firm not bill the District for the time put into the case between Nov. 1st and Feb. 28th until April 30, 2017?
Just what did this Olson firm do for the $16,274.50 taxpayer’s dollars it was paid?
Are there other matters the Olson firm is being paid taxpayer money for by CUSD? There is an investigation by the Orange County District Attorney’s office into this same matter involving Ms. Hatton-Hodson. That District Attorney investigation is not mentioned in the 9/26/16 Olson retainer agreement with CUSD.
Is the Orbach firm working for CUSD / Hatton-Hodson on the District Attorney’s investigation? Why else would they hire the $750 per hour Werksman firm which advertises itself as “Tenacious. Proven. Criminal Trial Attorneys“? The Werksman firm’s total invoicing (per the records CUSD disclosed) on this matter is $13,972.50 to date. $2,175.00 for work done in March 2017 AFTER the FPPC closed its file in February 2017.
Why would the Olson law firm retained to assist the former trustee by the District not list Trustee Hatton-Hodson as the Client rather than the District? After all the District did not fail to file the Disclosure form correctly – Lynn Hatton-Hodson apparently failed to do this. Why were there no written waivers of the obvious potential conflict of interest in the file disclosed to CPC?
What did the Orbach firm do for CUSD that the Olson firm was not already doing after the Board of Trustees hired Olson in late September 2016?
Here is the breakdown of the taxpayer dollars spent on lawyers in the Lynn Hatton-Hodson matter to date:
Olson $16,274.50
Orbach $11,728.00
Werksman $13,972.50
Total $41,975.00
Who Received What Benefits For The Public’s $41,975.00 Tax Dollars?
What did the taxpayers get for this expenditure of public funds? Apparently absolutely nothing except dollars that could have been used in the class room are now in the possession of attorneys. In fact, three sets of attorneys!
What did CUSD and the children it is supposed to service get for this expense? Nothing.
What did former Trustee Lynn Hatton-Hodson receive? A free taxpayer funded legal defense before the FPPC (and maybe for the District Attorney’s investigation as well).
Perhaps the real question here is what did the other Trustees get for this expenditure of their constituents’ money! Apparently the comfort of knowing that if in the future they are caught with their proverbial hands in the financial cookie jar they will have taxpayer dollars to defend their actions and mistakes as political candidates.
Craig Alexander is an attorney who represents requestors of information under the California Public Records Act. He is also volunteer General Counsel for the California Policy Center, Inc. a policy think tank that advocates for transparency in government. He is a former candidate for CUSD’s Board of Trustees. Craig can be reached at craig@craigalexanderlaw.com.
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