A San Benito County Superior Court judge denied a restraining
order against County Planning Director Rob Mendiola Tuesday, ruling
the two planning department employees accusing him of corruption
must file grievances with their union to seek protection from
retaliation.
Hollister – A San Benito County Superior Court judge denied a restraining order against County Planning Director Rob Mendiola Tuesday, ruling the two planning department employees accusing him of corruption must file grievances with their union to seek protection from retaliation.
Lawyer Michael Pekin said county planning department employees Jim Stevens and Ken Speciale are witnesses that will link Mendiola into a year-old corruption suit against County Supervisor Richard Scagliotti. Pekin sought the restraining order, he said, because the two men want protection against retaliation from
Mendiola, their boss, if they come forward as witnesses.
Pekin plans to use Stevens and Speciale as witnesses in the Juan Monteon case, which alleges Scagliotti abused his position as County Supervisor for personal gain. Pekin said the declarations of Stevens and Speciale, only one of which is signed, will tie Mendiola in to the Scagliotti corruption charges in the Monteon lawsuit.
The suit states Scagliotti, a local developer, used his political influence to have the county’s vehicle maintenance repair contract awarded to a tenant in a building he owns. The suit also states Scagliotti had the Churchill Nut plant rezoned from agricultural to manufacturing land after buying the plant, making himself a profit of $1.2 million.
But protecting his witnesses is Pekin’s number-one priority, he said.
“As a litigator, I have an inherent responsibility to make sure my witnesses are not intimidated. He’s (Stevens) not seeking any money, he’s not seeking any damages. As the litigator of the corruption case, I will see to it that this man is not retaliated against,” Pekin said.
Court Executive Officer Alex Calvo confirmed the court had “declined to sign protective orders” Tuesday, but said he had no further details.
Since the restraining order was denied on Dec. 14, Stevens has contacted his union representative, Joel Hill. Hill said he does not know yet whether Stevens will be continuing the grievance process.
“Obviously we’re not the enforcing agency, but if they receive retaliation (from their boss) because of reporting something, then we would file a grievance if they asked us to. But they have to ask us to, they have to trigger that themselves,” explained Sergio Sanchez, organizing director of the local SEIU.
Neither Mendiola, nor Stevens nor Speciale were available for comment Thursday.
Pekin became the subject of a grand jury criminal investigation last week after District Attorney John Sarsfield accused him of extortion against the Board of Supervisors stemming from the Monteon suit. All proceedings on the Monteon case will be postponed until after the investigation of Pekin is over, Pekin said.
The Monteon case is currently scheduled to go to court for summary judgment in early January.
Jessica Quandt covers politics for the Free Lance. Reach her at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or at [email protected].
