This Week in the Mercury
Sunday, August 31, 2008
News Leonard Tries To Duck Secret List Subpoena
Posted by Matt Davis on Sun, Aug 31, 2008 at 8:46 AM
As if he weren't too busy being a comedian on Blue Oregon, Portland's funniest city commissioner Randy Leonard has more serious things to attend to: Trying to duck a subpoena to appear in court to testify about his controversial secret list of downtown offenders, arguing through the city attorney's office that he is "not the custodian" of records relating to the program.
LEONARD: Didn't do it. Nobody saw him do it. You can't prove anything...
Leonard, who until now has been remarkably outspoken about the merits of his secret list, fell silent on August 21 following the Mercury's public records requests to his office, and to the police bureau and city attorney's offices, asking for records, emails, and communications relating to the list. The city attorney's office is yet to respond to our request for info, and the police bureau has only responded by asking clarifying questions. Meanwhile, the District Attorney's office responded only to say that a policy relating to the secret list exists, but when asked to provide the policy, Deputy District Attorney David Hannon also went quiet.
All this after the coordinator of the program at the police bureau admitted to the Mercury in May that the policy wasn't written down anywhere, promising to do so by July 1.
Leonard's chief of staff, Ty Kovatch, told the Mercury that Leonard didn't have any emails about the list, even though Leonard has been quoted extensively here and elsewhere saying how fantastic the program is. Now, Deputy City Attorney Ellen Osinach is arguing similarly. In a letter to the attorney issuing the subpoena, obtained by the Mercury this morning, Osinach writes:
Thank you for the updated subpoena with the added duces tecum. Commissioner Leonard is not the custodian of any NLCEP records, so the duces tecum portion of the subpoena isn't effective to produce those documents from him. The City doesn't want to obstruct your effort to get the documents you need, so if I can figure out exactly what you're looking for, I can help you get to the proper custodian.
Arguing that Leonard isn't the "custodian" of records relating to his secret list is an interesting distinction. I, for example, am certainly not the "custodian" of a lot of files and papers that cross the Mercury news room's desk, but should I get to dodge a subpoena despite having a huge amount of information available to me about what those documents might contain?
Commenting was not available when this article was originally published.
4
5
You know this.
Why are you playing dumb, all of a sudden?
6
And what did you mean when you wrote a comment here on blogtown that:
"I personally track the data closely because I am aware of the huge voids in the criminal justice system and the mental health system...the biggest hole being the traditional lack of coordination between both of those systems."
And finally, what about the actual list that has been going aroound that was prepared by city employees? Do you denounce any such programs that put people on a list an single them out for special treatment in the criminal justice system?
8
Matt, your accusations towards me border on libel. You have written slanderous and false articles and posts that I have to believe you know are untrue.
I have never been told of a list, I have never seen a list, I have never been told by the police bureau there is such a list, I have never emailed an officer or anyone else about a list, I do not direct the program, I do not sit on meetings about he program, no one has ever invited me to be in a meeting about the program. I have not emailed or received any emails about the program.
I think that should cover it.
Mayor Potter and Chief Sizer oversee the program. They have made that crystal clear to me and the officers in the program. If any such list exists, they have it...not me.
I got the council to give money for the program because of my belief that good people go bad when drugs and alcohol take control of their lives. I do not believe in simply sending people to jail as an answer to addictions. The program gets people into treatment who otherwise are strung out for their entire lives and must commit crimes to survive. Getting people into treatment with the threat of going to jail if they don't saves peoples lives and provides their families hope that their loved ones will come back to them sane and drug free.
And for that you continually harass me and my staff, Matt? For that you write false things about me in order to draw attention to yourself?
You are way over the line and I hope your better senses take over and you quit the slanderous titles and accusations you have been making towards me.
You have been told in emails and phone calls by my chief of staff and by me unequivocally that we neither know of nor have we ever seen any such list. If there is one, with the risk of being repetitive, call Mayor Potter and Chief Sizer.
And by the way, your attempts to drag one of my children into this drama you are self creating is beneath contempt.
9
10
I pass legislation all the time at the council and when I was in the legilature that I do not personally administer.
11
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Go to the search engine on the city site at:
http://www.portlandonline.com/leonard/index.cfm?search_action=SearchResults&mode=search
to see what information is available to the commissioner [since he is apparently hosting it on the city website].
Type in a search term such as " list " and the fourth result is an excellent street roots article on this very issue.
Type in a search term such as "NLCEP" and you get a nice Mercury article on the lack of a written policy.
And so on.
Randy Leonard is clearly aware of the list and the issues around the list so his statement above that "I have never been told of a list" is false.
However, I suppose it is possible that he lacks the curiousity to see exactly what programs he is personally supporting. But let's not pretend he doesn't read or get briefed on the news articles that his office reproduces on the web or the issues that he is getting subpoened into court to discuss.
His previous comments even here on blogtown suggest that he has at least heard of the list. If subpoenaed to court to discuss a governemnt program that you funded you think you'd look at the issue for a few minutes. But maybe not. Let's give him the benefit of the doubt and assume that the secret list and policy is being doen without council authority or support. The lack of intellectual curiousity by the council then becomes the real issue. Why give money to unclear and unwritten programs? Maybe that is the real story rather than Randy's personal (and personality) issues?
13
Let's assume you're as naive as you say you are. If you knew there was such a list in existence, would you support the continuance of the program?
And for god's sake, try to answer the question I asked.
Matt
Like, what time do you get home at night? Does anyone live with you? Do you have an alarm system? Are you a member of the NRA? Do you keep your shotgun loaded. That kind of clarification?
15
It's a bailout! I hope Rumsfeld's kids move here too.
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