Politics |

Brown Act violation in Antioch? DA investigated alleged secret meeting held at mayor’s home

ANTIOCH — The Contra Costa District Attorney penned a letter to Antioch leaders voicing “serious concerns” and warning of possible future criminal prosecution after learning that three elected officials may have held a secret meeting at the mayor’s home to discuss electoral redistricting.

Ultimately, prosecutors determined a Brown Act violation couldn’t be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

The Jan. 4 letter, signed by DA Diana Becton and the prosecutor in charge of public corruption, says the investigation concluded that there was a private meeting between Mayor Lamar Hernandez-Thorpe, Mayor Pro Tem Monica Wilson and Councilwoman Tamisha Torres-Walker in 2022. What prosecutors say what they can’t prove is whether the three privately aligned their votes, which would blatantly violate the state’s open meetings law.

The letter obtained by this news organization says that prosecutors have “serious concerns that noncompliance with the Brown Act may have occurred, however, there is insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt intentional violations of the statute at this time.” But the controversy isn’t over — Becton’s office has tipped off the Contra Costa County Grand Jury, which could decide to take further action in secret proceedings.

“We have decided to bring our concerns to your attention in order for you to impress upon the council the importance of the Brown Act and the requirements of the statute,” reads the letter, addressed to Antioch Acting City Manager Kwame Reed. “Any similar meeting on matters concerning the city could subject council members to criminal liability.”

Reached by phone Thursday, Hernandez-Thorpe said that “the letter speaks for itself” but that he’d be happy to take “corrective action” if and when the DA demonstrates evidence of a Brown Act violation, as he’s done after observing others in Antioch city government violate the law. As to whether or not he met with Torres-Walker and Wilson, Hernandez-Thorpe said that he had but not for a nefarious purpose.

“We coordinate campaigns and whatnot, because we’re Democrats. We’re together all the time,” Hernandez-Thorpe said. He later added, “I think if they can demonstrate that we violated the Brown Act, we’re more than happy to take corrective action.”

Torres-Walker said Thursday that she had no problem with whoever tipped off the DA using the proper channels to voice their concerns but said the potential for distraction is “a little frustrating.”

“It’s unfortunate that rather than doing right by this city and its residents, we have to continuously fight off un-credible and unreasonable allegations that ultimately go nowhere,” Torres-Walker said. “It’s no surprise that the three of us — and I’ma just name it, Black people on the council — have been questioned of being in cahoots since I was elected in 2021.”

Wilson has not yet provided comment.

Prosecutors say they were tipped off about the alleged meetings in 2023 and interviewed multiple witnesses, who are not named in the letter. The tip accused the three of discussing the hiring of the city engineer, but further investigation by the DA “led to an allegation that those three city officials met in private to discuss the redistricting of the city’s electoral map” in 2022, the letter says.

The redistricting map Hernandez-Thorpe, Torres-Walker and Wilson approved in early 2022 had political implications. It carved up the neighborhood where Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock lives, moving her into Wilson’s district, months before Wilson’s seat would be up for re-election.

Ogorchock ran for the seat in her new district, coming in second behind Wilson in the November 2022 race. She remains on council until her current term ends after this fall’s election, a contest she cannot participate in unless she moves.

Observers of the city’s redistricting process, which takes place every 10 years based on new census data, openly questioned why that map won out over versions that did not split up neighborhoods or “communities of interest” and seemed more aligned with the Fair Maps Act.

Adding to the intrigue was how the exile of Ogorchock from District 3 to District 4 went down. After approving a final map on March 8, 2022, the council hurriedly returned for a special meeting three days later, after Torres-Walker said the version adopted was not the one she intended to introduce. That’s when the map affecting Ogorchock was approved in a 3-2 vote, with Hernandez-Thorpe, Torres-Walker and Wilson in support and Orgorchock and Councilman Mike Barbanica opposed. It all left some residents baffled.

“You guys don’t say why you support a map, why you don’t support a map,” resident Lindsey Amezcua said at the March 11 meeting. She later added, “We have no idea why maps have been rejected, why maps have been moved forward. This whole process is meant to be for us the residents, not for you guys, and the fact that we are being left out is not in the best interest of any of us.”

Former Mayor Mary Rocha said the redrawn line “does exactly what you want it to do — cut around the areas” to move Orgochock into Wilson’s district. “I am very disappointed in all of you,” she added.

At the March 11 meeting, Ogorchock insinuated that Torres-Walker had purposely drawn lines to place her in another district. “I just moved the lines,” Torres-Walker responded. “I had no idea where you lived.”

Signed in 1953, the Brown Act was designed to ensure that government business was handled in public and without undue influence. It provides a blueprint for how local government officials should conduct themselves. One of the key provisions is that a majority of an elected government body cannot meet to arrange a vote in private. But for it to amount to a criminal misdemeanor, there must be sufficient evidence a private meeting was held, city business was discussed, and a collective action was taken with the intent to deprive the public of information.

David Loy, legal director of the First Amendment Coalition, called the alleged conduct by Antioch officials “highly troubling” if true and the DA’s letter “highly significant.”

“I don’t think the DA would have issued this kind of letter if they didn’t have serious concerns,” Loy said. “Reading between the lines, they are saying, ‘Maybe we can’t prove you committed a crime, but dodging a bullet makes you lucky. It doesn’t mean you did the right thing.’ ”

Read a copy of the letter HERE. Please note: It is incorrectly dated Jan. 4, 2023, but was actually sent out on Jan. 4, 2024, according to the DA’s office.