Open Letter to San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and the San Jose City Council

Post 1/23

Subject: Open Letter to San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and the San Jose City Council

From: Fred Bates

July 12, 2015

Dear Mayor and City Council,

            I am sure you are aware of my lawsuit against the City that I filed in 2006. As you know, my lawsuit is pending on appeal in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. You are also aware that I have made some very serious accusations of criminal misconduct against the San Jose City Attorney’s Office and three former police administrators, as well as, several federal court officials relative to my lawsuit. The purpose of this letter is to make one last appeal for an investigation into this matter based on the conduct of the City Attorney’s Office and other entities of the City.

            The San Jose City Attorney’s Office under the leadership of Richard Doyle has been run like a criminal enterprise. That is based on the criminal acts that have been committed in my case alone. Misconduct by the City Attorney’s Office is no secret. In 2006, Mercury News reporter Scott Herhold wrote an article asking City Attorney Richard Doyle to resign. Mr. Herhold implied that the City Attorney had used unethical tactics during litigation. Mr. Herhold also stated that poor judgment by Mr. Doyle to push bad cases and his refusal to settle weak ones had cost the City millions of dollars. My case is an example of very poor judgment by the City Attorney. He was given several opportunities to resolve my case without cost to the City, but he refused to do so. So far, my case has cost taxpayers thousands of dollars. It is likely to cost several thousands more before there is a resolution. Mr. Herhold stated that the City Attorney has lived by the sword and that no one should be shocked if he dies by it. That day has come. The fact that Mr. Doyle must go should not be open for debate. It should be noted that the City Manager’s Office, the City Clerk’s Office and the Ethics Commission also engaged in serious misconduct in this matter.

            The response by City leaders to this misconduct has been nothing short of disgraceful because of its cover-up. The cover-up is proof that there are two levels of accountability for City officials. In an article on March 18, 2015, the San Jose Inside reported that retiring Independent Police Auditor Ladoris Cordell had brought “unprecedented accountability” to the City’s police department. During the same five years Judge Cordell has been IPA, I have filed several complaint letters with former mayor Chuck Reed, Mayor Liccardo, as well as, with current and former council members against the City Attorney’s Office for very serious misconduct. I only received one response from Mr. Reed’s office that basically stated my letter was received. So far, there has not been an investigation into this matter at any level. While there has been unprecedented accountability brought to the police department, there have been an unprecedented lack of accountability on the part of City leaders and other high ranking City officials.

            I remind Mayor Liccardo and Vice Mayor Herrera that they supported the IPA’s recommendation that the police department should adopt a no-tolerance policy for untruthful officers, saying that the police department should update the duty manual to make lying during an investigation automatic cause for termination. This hard-line stance against lying should also be taken against other entities of the City that made flagrantly false statements relative to this matter, particularly the City Attorney’s Office. The City Attorney’s Office filed a summary judgment motion relative to my lawsuit that was totally fabricated. The summary judgment motion was facilitated by a fraudulent stipulation of dismissal of a police official that clearly violated my rights. These are the type of unethical tactics by City Attorney Richard Doyle that Mr. Herhold seemed to refer to in his article. This is all the more reason that Mr. Doyle should suffer the same fate as former City Manager Ed Shikada and former Deputy City Manager Alex Gurza. The evidence is indisputable that Mr. Gurza played a significant role in the cover up of this scandal. It is high time for an open and transparent investigation into this very serious misconduct as is required by the City’s Code of Ethics. A copy of the City’s Code of Ethics can be viewed on the City’s official website. 

            I am also sure you are aware of my motion to vacate the judgment of the district court accompanying my appeal. It should be a no-brainer for the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to grant my motion because the City Attorney’s Office has admitted it presented false information to the courts; and the US District Court has admitted its judgment is incorrect relative to my Rule 60 motion that is the basis of my appeal. Now is the time for the outrageous lies and cover-up to end. You can access my group facebook page at this link https://www.facebook.com/groups/624131267713226/ for additional details. 

                                                                                                         Sincerely,

                                                                                                         Fred Bates