Baffling: That’s the only word we can think of to describe the
County Board of Supervisors’ morning after reaction to the release
of a 120-day old confidential report essentially concluding that
District Attorney John Sarsfield repeatedly and flagrantly abused
the powers of his office.
Baffling: That’s the only word we can think of to describe the County Board of Supervisors’ morning after reaction to the release of a 120-day old confidential report essentially concluding that District Attorney John Sarsfield repeatedly and flagrantly abused the powers of his office.
The board could have followed at least three courses of action: issue an immediate vote of no confidence and recommend that California Attorney General Bill Lockyer suspend Sarsfield pending further deliberation and legal guidance; call for a grand jury investigation into the matter; or endorse the recall effort currently underway to remove Sarsfield from office. Yet, remarkably, the board last Friday announced that it would doggedly pursue those responsible for leaking the report to the Free Lance. Further confounding this politically-motivated drill was their collective handwringing over the possibility that Sarsfield might launch a first strike and sue the county over the leak.
You heard it correctly: The guardian of the county’s legal system and chief law enforcement officer – who has not as yet publicly refuted or commented on the report, offered an explanation for his actions or suffered any disciplinary action since the report was issued back in October 2004 – may take a financial bite out of the hand that feeds him, the taxpayer. Keep in mind this soap opera has already cost us more than $160,000, according to one county source, and the meter is still running. Sarsfield’s legal recourse may temporarily divert attention from the serious charges leveled against him, but enough is enough.
We understand the board’s responsibility to investigate how the report was leaked to the press and, in turn, tighten up on internal controls, but to make this their initial priority is troubling at best. Furthermore, the fact that this report was not voluntarily made public months ago only adds to an atmosphere of mistrust and governing paralysis.
The District Attorney’s office and its ability to function effectively have been severely hamstrung, while the county’s exposure to further lawsuits has been greatly enhanced as a result of Sarsfield’s inexcusable actions. The time for the supervisors to act is now.
We can only hope the board is working behind the scene to responsibly, but expeditiously, remove Sarsfield from office. We hold out a great deal of hope that this board will do the right thing and understand this is a precarious situation. We also realize this began before three of the current supervisors took office.
However, by its failure thus far to address the core issue and play a leadership role in immediately removing Sarsfield from office, the board appears to be more concerned with pummeling the messenger than doing the people’s business.
