So, as Dylan Smith at the Tucson Sentinel got out of the city councilman, Paul Cunningham admits he had to much to drink during TREO's San Diego junket and "said some things that might be considered inappropriate."
However, the question remains, what actually happened and who's looking into it?
Early this week, the Weekly filed a public records request for a copy of and all communication regarding the alleged complaint filed with the City Attorney's office by assistant city manager/chief financial officer Kelly Gottschalk regarding the comments allegedly made to her (and then other women in the vicinity) by Cunningham in a bar during a TREO junket to San Diego two weeks ago.
We followed up with City Attorney Mike Rankin regarding the request and he explained that there is no formal complaint, although sources close to the Weekly have made it clear that a complaint was filed and statements provided by witnesses at the bar who saw the entire mess go down.
One source told the Weekly that Cunningham allegedly asked Gottschalk if she was going to go up to his room with him, and when she walked away, he turned and asked the same of two other women. No, no one took him up on his offer, but according to his comments since the story came out, he wouldn't have been able to remember anyway.
According to Rankin, there's nothing to provide the Weekly because "a complaint hasn't been filed," and that as of yesterday the City Attorney's office is no longer in charge of the "review." The case now rests with the city's Office of Equal Opportunity Programs.
Then he explained that the city has an administrative directive that sets a city policy that "governs how discrimination and sexual harassment are to be addressed by the city. ... the short version is that I don't investigate them and the office of EEO is charged with the investigative authority. That's the accurate way to characterize this. I have referred the matter to the city's EOP to investigate."
One source to the Weekly wondered if the case would be referred to the state's Attorney General's office. "Either there's no investigation at all (as Paul's claiming), or the City Attorney is obligated to refer this to another jurisdiction. They can't legally investigate this internally. ... No one's acknowledging the existence of a complaint, because that would indicate a paper trail. And yet actions are clearly being taken on reports of serious misconduct."
We'll keep asking for the paperwork and try to find out where the investigation is heading (if it's happening at all), and keep you posted.
