Oakland (Special to ZennieReport.com) – In 2023, The Oakland Public Ethics Commission’s investigator Simon Russell reported to the PEC Board that in response to Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao’s then-proposed cuts for the 2023-2025 budget , he would need four investigators to deal with the then current workload without putting cases on hold.
Now, it appears that the two-year-old Oakland Public Ethics Commission LeAnna Powell case against Sheng Thao was benched, while the OPEC, spooked by Mayor Thao’s budget cuts, threatens alleged Oakland Mayor Thao Recall Effort campaigners with what in this Oakland Blogger’s opinion are questionable subpoenas.
The main question is why did the Oakland Public Ethics Commission choose to wade into the waters of obvious corruption by using its subpeona and investigative power to defend Mayor Thao just after her budget cuts against it, and turn away from the case against the Mayor, the one filed by the suffering LeAnna Powell?
The Oakland Public Ethics Commission claims that “Our objective is to make sure Oakland public officials and government decision-making processes operate in a fair and unbiased manner, to promote transparency in Oakland government, and to promote public trust in our local political system.” But after reading this post, you will find it hard to not laugh at such an assertion.
Oakland Public Ethics Commission’s Treva Hadden Ignores LeAna Powell Case, Says Powell
One of the cases the Public Ethics Commission’s Russell was working on involved LeAnna Powell, who complained of civil rights violations by 2022 Oakland Mayoral Election Candidate, now Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao (Zennie62Media’s 2022 interview with Ms. Powell is here). While Simon Russell hasn’t remarked on Ms. Powell’s case since 2022, new Public Ethics Commission Investigator Treva Hadden, directed by new-since 2023 Executive Director Nicolas Heidorn, is working on a brand new case that benefits the PEC’s Budget controller, Mayor Sheng Thao. Yep, the same Sheng Thao who’s still under PEC investigation.
Treva Hadden has reportedly hand-delivered what is on its face a rather scary supeona to the following list of people:
• Rebecca Olson;
• Tanya Boyce;
• Leonard Raphael;
• Michelle Hailey;
• Rubina Karnad;
• Andrew Hock; and
• Seneca Scott
However the Public Ethics Commission did not receive court-order to hand-deliver the letters. In the document provided with the letter, the PEC refers to the supeona power granted to it by the City of Oakland, itself.
The PEC reportedly believes the people listed have something do to with an alleged effort to hide the source of campaign funds supposedly directed to Mayor Thao’s Recall Effort. Meanwhile, LeAnna Powell told Zennie62Media that the same Treva Hadden promised her that she would “get to the bottom of” her case civil rights against Mayor Thao.
Powell talks about it here:
So, while the Oakland PEC gives the look that it has redirected Treva Hadden away from investigating Mayor Thao and toward an effort that defends Sheng, LeAnna Powell has waited now two years for “justice” from the Ethics Commission. During that time, Ms. Powell, the former Sheng Thao City Council Office Aide, told Zennie62Media she has contracted Stage Two Breast Cancer.
Did Stress From Waiting For Oakland PEC To Take On Case Cause Powell’s Cancer?
Reached by phone at her home, LeAna Powell was flabergasted that the Oakland Public Ethics Commission’s Treva Hadden would apparently delay working on her two year old case against the now Mayor of Oakland, but start a new case that will have the ultimate effect of helping Sheng Thao escape a successful recall vote. “They have forgotten about me,” said Powell,” and I’m suffering from cancer, and they haven’t even contacted me,” she said.
Powell agrees with this blogger’s assertion that the Oakland Public Ethics Commission delays and playing around with her case had contributed to the stress that may have triggered her cancer. Now, Powell’s on chemotherapy.
A phone call to Treva Hadden was made before this ZennieReport.com article was written. But the LeAna Powell cancer news was not known to Zennie62Media until this blogger elected to call Mr. Powell out-of-the-blue, and after seeing a reference to her 2022 case, in reports about the Mayor’s PEC budget cuts.
The entire affair is shocking and scary, placing the supposedly above-board Oakland Public Ethics Commission in a corrupt pose that looks like it’s being influnced by Mayor Thao or her associates to do wrongheaded acts. One of them going after assumed mayoral recall-campaigners with esoteric legal claims.
The documents requested (the details are provided in the embeded file copy below), call for the documents to be delivered to the Oakland Public Ethics Commission by May 29th 2024 at 5 PM.
The letter that was sent to the alleged supporters was shared with Zennie62Media, Inc., and reads as follows:
Simon Russell
Enforcement Chief, City of Oakland Public Ethics Commission
1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Room 104, Oakland, CA 94612
(510) 424-3200
May 18, 2024
Foundational Oakland United (SOS ID # 6001960)
400 Capitol Mall, Suite 2400
Sacramento, CA 95814
Attn: Tanya Boyce
re: Opening of Public Ethics Investigation (# 24-08); Issuance of subpoena (# 240008-04) To “Foundational Oakland United”, its officers, directors, and agents: The City of Oakland Public Ethics Commission (PEC) has opened an investigation into allegations that you may have acted as an intermediary to cause, aid or abet the making of earmarked campaign contributions to the committee “Oakland United To Recall Sheng Thao” (OUST) in a name other than those of the original contributors and without proper disclosure of your intermediary role on OUST’s campaign finance reports. You are being served with a subpoena for certain records in your possession. Because you are an entity, you are required to search the records of your officers, directors, treasurers, employees, contractors, volunteers, or agents who might reasonably have some of the records sought, including the following individuals specified on the subpoena:
• Rebecca Olson;
• Tanya Boyce;
• Leonard Raphael;
• Michelle Hailey;
• Rubina Karnad;
• Andrew Hock; and
• Seneca Scott
If you are unable to contact any of those people, or do not believe that they fall within the scope of your organization, please contact me immediately to discuss. My contact information is on the subpoena and can also be found below. Because this matter concerns an ongoing election campaign, we consider it to be time-sensitive and will therefore not be granting any extension to the subpoena deadline absent good cause. A rolling production of records might be possible, but I will need to approve any such plan with you in writing first. We intend to timely seek a court order to enforce this subpoena if you fail to meet the production deadline or otherwise fail to comply with its terms. A similar subpoena is also being served on your affiliated PAC, “Foundational Oakland Unites (nonprofit 501(c)(4))” (SOS ID # 1467180). You can contact me at (510) 424-3200 or sr******@oa*******.gov if you need to discuss. Email is preferred.
Sincerely,
Simon Russell
Enforcement Chief
Can The Oakland Public Ethics Commission Subpoana Be Squashed?
What, if anything can those who got such a notice do? Well, the common suggestion is to call a lawyer. In addition, California law has detailed instructions that guide the proper writing and delivery of a subpoena. In this case, in this blogger’s opinion, there is at least one problematic aspect of the document: it was not issued by the court, and an officer of the court.
That does invite the question why the Public Ethics Commission just did not go ahead and file with the court? When I ran these queries by one long-time Oakland lawyer and friend, his response was that the PEC’s claims looked “iffy”.
What Do The Oakland PEC Minders Have To Say?
In this vlogger and blogger’s view, this news is yet another example of what City of Oakland workers have personally told me is the City deline “into Hell”, as one friend put it over the weekend. “The moral here is the worst in my 30-years (working for the City of Oakland),” that person said, and did not have any kind words for the Mayor of Oakland that person once called friend.
Meanwhile, the Mayor of Oakland is acting every bit like someone desperate to save her job. But she’s going about it in a way that’s increasingly troubling to a growing number of Oaklanders and City of Oakland workers.
What will the Oakland Public Ethics Commission minders have to say about all of this after outreach by Zennie62Media?
Stay tuned.