The Alameda County grand jury’s annual report is typically released in late June. OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | The spate of controversies that followed the Oakland City Council’s decision last August to initially award a $1 billion garbage contract to a local… Read More ›
non-intererence laws
Gallo wants McElhaney to publicly address ethics allegations against her
Councilmember Noel Gallo wants Council President Lynette Gibson McElhaney to address newpaper’s allegations against her. OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | At least one member of the Oakland City Council is willing to speak publicly on the multiple controversies surrounding council President… Read More ›
Report: Oakland councilmember used her office for personal gain
Council President Lynette Gibson McElhaney OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | Two thousand fifteen has not been pleasant for new Oakland City Council President Lynette McElhaney. First, a report in January found she may have been flipping homes in her West Oakland… Read More ›
Long-Time Oakland Councilmember Larry Reid May Soon Quit
Councilmember Larry Reid OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | There may be another city council seat open this November in Oakland. Sources at City Hall say Councilmember Larry Reid is set to retire after 17 years in office. However, Reid was already… Read More ›
2013 Year In Lists: Desley Brooks’s Top 5 Stages of Grief Over Ethics Allegations
2013 YEAR-IN-REVIEW | The five stages of grief is denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Before and after a report from City Auditor Courtney Ruby alleged Councilmember Desley Brooks violated the City Charter’s non-interference laws that sets a barrier between… Read More ›
Kalb Begins Task Of Giving Oakland Watchdog Group Some Teeth
Councilmember Kalb’s public ethics group began work this week. OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL//ETHICS | Oakland Councilmember Dan Kalb took a moment Monday to speak for the entire council. “There’s a sense out there in the community that residents have lost trust… Read More ›
Oakland Auditor Finds City Staff Received $23,000 In Gifts; Improperly Used Workers’ Comp Fund
Oakland City Auditor Courtney Ruby OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | Within a two-year period, 14 Oakland city managers and staffers received an estimated $23,000 in improper gifts from vendors associated with the city’s workers’ compensation program, said City Auditor Courtney Ruby in… Read More ›
Reid For Mayor? ‘If I Can Raise $400,000, I’m In The Race’
Larry Reid: awaiting a call from God or campaign donors? OAKLAND//MAYOR | Councilmember Larry Reid entered the Oakland City Council chambers last Thursday evening to a wave of cheers from supporters on hand early for a truly raucous, yet divisive… Read More ›
Brooks Escapes Censure; Council Admonishes Itself For Past Interference
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | Oakland Councilmember Desley Brooks escaped censure Thursday night in a meeting filled with racial innuendo and a flood of support from members of her East Oakland district. However, the City Council voted to reprimand itself, excluding its three… Read More ›
Defiant Brooks Offers 35-Page Retort To Censure; Calls Charges ‘Purely Political’
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL//BROOKS CENSURE | Don’t confuse the relative silence from Oakland Councilmember Desley Brooks before she faces censure proceedings this Thursday with resignation, she’s merely been assembling her defense. On Monday, Brooks, who was accused last March by City Auditor Courtney Ruby… Read More ›
Alameda County D.A. Won’t File Charges Against Oakland Councilmember Brooks
The statute of limitations for prosecuting Oakland Councilmember Desley Brooks for allegations of 12 violations of the City Charter has passed, said Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley. On the heels of a civil grand jury report criticizing Brooks and… Read More ›
Reid Withdraws Proposal To ‘Audit the Auditor’s Audit’
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | Oakland Councilman Larry Reid has withdrawn an item from next week’s agenda asking for an outside auditor to look into allegations made against him and Councilmember Desley Reid by the city’s own auditor. Oakland City Auditor… Read More ›
Gallo Urges Oakland City Council To Confront City Auditor’s Allegations
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL//RUBY REPORT | Oakland Councilmember Noel Gallo called on the City Council Tuesday night to confront the issues raised in a politically explosive city audit last month against members Desley Brooks and Larry Reid. “This issue has come… Read More ›
Brooks Calls Audit A ‘Political Vendetta’
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL//RUBY REPORT | In her first public comments in response to a city auditor’s report alleging 12 violations of the city charter, Councilmember Desley Brooks called its findings a “political vendetta” and demanded her colleagues ask for proof. “This council should be… Read More ›
‘Larry You Are My Brother’ Facebook Page Lacking Likability, But Friends Lurk In Low Places
“Larry You Are My Brother” Facebook page OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | When times are tough, many say, the only people you can really count on is family. In embattled Oakland Councilman Larry Reid’s case, his propensity for calling everyone his brothers… Read More ›
A Great Week For Accountability In Alameda County
SUNDAY COLUMN | There is no need to rehash the specifics of the horrendous 2012 political year in Alameda County. But, last Thursday was a great day for accountability with the release of a scathing audit forcefully coming down on… Read More ›
Ding Dong, Is The Witch Dead? How Brooks Will Confront Scathing Audit
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | Enough is enough! That is what city officials in Oakland appear to be saying when it comes to allegations of unethical behavior among some of its council members and years of institutional abuse. An explosive audit… Read More ›
Auditor: Oakland Councilmembers Brooks, Reid Broke Non-Interference Rules
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL | Oakland City Council members Larry Reid and Desley Brooks broke city laws prohibiting interference in the city’s administrative affairs and bidding process, according to a report released by City Auditor Courtney Ruby today. According to Ruby,… Read More ›
