A4 December 1-3, 2016
Richmond Free Press
News
Mayor Dwight C. Jones cleared of allegations Continued from A1
the uproar over allegations of cronyism and corruption flavored the fall campaign for mayor with candidates vying for public favor with promises to clean up City Hall. As soon as the probe began, Mayor Jones stated, “I cooperated extensively in the investigation to ensure any concerns were carefully examined and dispelled,” he continued. “I was confident my administration strictly adhered to the law, and I am pleased, but not surprised, the Virginia State Police and Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney agree. Although the investigation took longer than expected, it was thorough and conclusive, and I am glad it is behind us,” stated the mayor, who will leave office at the end of this month. Mayor-elect Levar Stoney declined to comment on the outcome or to say whether he would seek to follow Mr. Herring’s recommendations for improvements to the city’s code of ethics. In Mr. Herring’s view, the city needs to require more disclosure and written permission for employees, particularly managers, who involve themselves in volunteer projects that could create conflicts of interest. He also recommended that the city require greater disclosure from job applicants of any relationships with top city officials, including the mayor. He said the kind of extensive probe that was undertaken might not have been needed if such disclosure requirements were in place. As the report relates, the case began in December when Umesh Dalal, the city’s internal auditor and inspector general, received a complaint that the city’s director of public works, Emmanuel Adediran, was neglecting his city duties to serve as project manager for First Baptist’s construction project in Chesterfield. Mr. Adediran, who has worked for the city since 1999 and still serves as director of public works, is an associate minister at First Baptist. The complaint alleged that Mr. Adediran “spent numerous hours” on city time visiting the church’s satellite sanctuary construction site and taking calls and meetings involving the development. On Jan. 5, Mr. Dalal dropped a bombshell in a letter to the administration, reporting his finding that Mr. Adediran had spent 38 hours during normal city business hours as a volunteer on the church project. In response, Mayor Jones and Selena Cuffee-Glenn, the city’s chief administrative officer, required Mr. Adediran to forfeit 38 hours of unused vacation time to make up that time. Mr. Dalal then uncovered emails indicating that Mayor Jones had been aware of Mr. Adediran’s service to the church, which led Mr. Dalal to refer the matter to Mr. Herring. The mayor also asked the State Police to investigate to determine if Mr. Adediran had made “any use of city property or resources” in his role on the construction project. The State Police than went to Mr. Herring, who then gained permission from the multijurisdictional grand jury to begin an investigation involving interviews with witnesses, and combing through emails, documents, city records and other items. Mr. Herring stated that the probe first sought to determine if any city taxpayer dollars were used to support the church’s building project. He stated that neither Mr. Dalal nor the investigators found any “records of city expenditures related to the project.” “No city employee we interviewed was aware of any city funds being used for the project,” Mr. Herring said. “There also was no evidence city employees (other than Mr. Adediran) contributed in any way to the project during the city workday.” Mr. Herring stated that by giving up the 38 hours, “Mr. Adediran acknowledged that he was careless in conducting church business during the city’s workday.” But Mr. Herring also stated that no evidence was found that Mr. Adediran spent time at or near the construction site on city time. As a result, Mr. Herring stated that the probe did not find that Mr. Adediran’s actions constituted “probable cause of a crime” and that the administrative penalty was sufficient. Mr. Herring said the probe also checked to determine if any city employees used their official positions in a bid to obtain lower prices for the church’s construction needs. While witnesses said, and emails showed, that Mr. Adediran bragged that he could get preferential pricing from City of Richmond vendors who also had contracts on the church project, Mr. Herring stated that no evidence emerged to prove Mr. Adediran did more than attempt “to leverage his relationships, if not his
Bourne to play integral role on new School Board Continued from A1
intendent in January 2014, began his tenure more than halfway into the four-year term of the outgoing board. At several candidate forums this fall, incoming board members were critical of Dr. Bedden’s leadership and ran on platforms of radically changing the city’s schools. Felicia D. Cosby, 44, who beat out incumbent Shonda M. Harris-Muhammed in the 6th District; Dawn C. Page, 52, who ran against two opponents in the 8th District for the seat currently held by Dr. Derik Jones; and Linda B. Owen, 70, who ran unopposed in the 9th District, are familiar with the school system. Dr. Bedden ousted Ms. Cosby, former RPS spokesperson, in 2014. Ms. Owen is a retired school librarian. Ms. Page previously served on the School Board for the 8th District for two years, serving as vice chair. Other incoming school board members Dr. Bedden include Liz B. Doerr, 31, 1st District; J. Scott Barlow, 28, 2nd District; Jonathan M. Young, 39, 4th District; Patrick M. Sapini, 46, 5th District; and Nadine D. Marsh-Carter, 52, 7th District. They do not have any formal experience with the school system. Nonetheless, Dr. Bedden said he views Richmond schools as undergoing a period of transition and hopes the new board will share his patience. “My expectation is that we work toward the same goal but every child is not going to get there at the same time,” he told the Free Press. “But the community should expect progress.” Mr. Bourne, too, has faith that focusing on the students will continue to be the board’s No. 1 priority. He even had a word of advice for his incoming colleagues. “My request of all School Board members and the superintendent is ‘Look, let’s come and build with a clean slate. Let everyone build their own relationships that are built on respect and mutual concern for the success of our students.’ ”
directorship” to gain lower prices. “For one thing, he was unsuccessful,” Mr. Herring stated, noting that the quotes he obtained for the church from city vendors were higher than those from non-city vendors and those obtained by the (church’s) general contractor.” Mr. Herring also noted that state law does not prohibit government vendors from engaging in private contracts with city employees or officials unless that contract involves the use of taxpayer funds or involves promises of future city business in exchange for lower prices. “Ultimately, while Mr. Adediran’s attempts to obtain favorable price is unseemly and significantly undermines public confidence, it is not public embezzlement. It is not illegal,” Mr. Herring stated in the report. Finally, the investigation found no emails or witnesses that Mr. Adediran offered future city business to vendors to benefit the church’s project. “Mr. Adediran, the mayor and (his son and First Baptist pastor) Derik Jones denied offering any inducements to vendors and we found no evidence to the contrary,” Mr. Herring stated. Although the probe “raises suspicion and concern about opaque government and calls into question the credibility of many involved, the facts do not support prosecution,” Mr. Herring concluded. Quoting a colleague, Mr. Herring stated that what “may rightly provoke the public’s ire is not sufficient for criminal prosecution.” Mr. Herring noted that the probe also followed up on allega-
tions of cronyism related to the mayor’s penchant for hiring some church members to high-paying positions and “a vague allegation” that the mayor did so to have those hired engage in direct tithing of a portion of their salaries to improve church collections. Mr. Herring stated that the probe found that of the 58 executives in the mayor’s administration, six are church members and five of them occupied positions with annual salaries of $100,000 or more. However, there was no evidence of a quid pro quo to the church. Mr. Herring stated that mayor stated that none of the senior employees tithed or gave 10 percent of their salary to their church, and most actually donated little or no money at all. According to Mr. Herring, the mayor was found to follow a policy of hiring church members where possible, in large measure to ensure diversity in his administration as members of the church are largely African-American. Still, Mr. Herring said that it would have been better if the relationship between the mayor, the church and those hired to executive posts had been disclosed. While Mayor Jones’ hiring policy “smacks of cronyism,” Mr. Herring stated, “this practice is not, in fact, criminal. While it may reflect poor judgment and endear loyalty to the mayor, nothing in the Commonwealth’s criminal statutes prohibits such conduct.” However, Mr. Herring stated that the lack of criminality “does not foreclose the need for serious public discussions, perhaps among newly elected officials, regarding how these practices undermine confidence in our city government.”
Stoney draws transition team Continued from A1 Co-chairs: Tiffany Jana, CEO, TMI Consulting Inc. William H. “Bill” Leighty, former chief of staff for Govs. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine Transition director: Dr. Williamson, former director of Richmond’s Office of Community Wealth Building Transition committee members: Business Laura Bateman, lobbying/public relations, Bateman Consulting Eva Teig Hardy, retired executive vice president, Dominion Resources William L. “Bill” Murray, managing director, public policy, Dominion Resources John Sherman Jr., retired president, CEO, Scott & Stringellow Lisa Speller-Davis, outreach/marketing manager, Humana Ronald L. Tillett, broker, Raymond James & Assoc. Samuel S. “Sam” Young, president, Astyra Corp. Education Eva Colen, 2016 education advocacy fellow, 50CAN: 50-State Campaign for Achievement Now Dr. Ronald A. Crutcher, president, University of Richmond Dr. Joseph F. Johnson, acting president, Virginia Union University
Dr. Michael Rao, president, Virginia Commonwealth University Government Dr. Danny Avula, director, Richmond City Health District Jonathan T. Baliles, 1st District City Councilman Jeff M. Bourne, chairman and 3rd District representative, Richmond School Board Marland Buckner Jr., co-founder, principal, MB2 Solutions domestic policy strategy firm Melvin D. Carter, executive director, Virginia Department of Fire Programs Ashley Hall, manager, Capital Region Collaborative Kelly Harris-Braxton, executive director, lobbyist, Virginia First Cities Anne B. Holton, former Richmond judge, former state secretary of education Birdie H. Jamison, retired Richmond judge Delores L. McQuinn, Richmond representative in the House of Delegates William J. Pantele, lawyer and former 2nd District City Councilman Tyrone E. Nelson, minister, and chairman and Varina representative, Henrico County Board of Supervisors Christopher K. Peace, Hanover County representative in the House of Delegates James J.L. “Jay” Stegmaier, retired county administrator, Chesterfield County John A. Venuti, police chief, Virginia Commonwealth University
Housing Bob Adams, president, HDAdvisors housing and community development consulting Andrew Clark, director of government affairs/member services, Home Building Association of Richmond Greta J. Harris, president/CEO, Better Housing Coalition Legal Adam N. Harrell Jr., co-managing partner, Harrell & Chambliss LLP Jennifer D. Mullen, partner Roth Doner Jackson PLC Religion The Rev. Yvonne J. Bibbs, pastor, Sixth Baptist Church, Richmond The Rev. Benjamin C. Campbell, civic volunteer, former pastoral director, Richmond Hill Nonprofit Tanya M. Gonzalez, executive director, Sacred Heart Center Damon Jiggetts, executive director, Peter Paul Development Center Rupa Murthy, chief development officer, YWCA Abby Farris Rogers, vice president/chief advancement officer, YMCA Dr. Thelma B. Watson, executive director, Senior Connections, The Capital Area Agency on Aging
Donald Trump changes course to avoid conflict of interest Continued from A1
Mr. Trump’s businesswoman daughter Ivanka joined her father’s telephone call with Argentine President Mauricio Macri earlier this month and attended a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, raising questions of possible conflicts of interest. Rules on conflict of interest for executive branch employees do not apply to the president, but Mr. Trump will be bound by bribery laws, disclosure requirements and a section of the U.S. Constitution that prohibits elected officials from taking gifts from foreign governments. Also on Wednesday, Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein requested a multimillion-dollar full hand recount of Michigan’s presidential vote, making it the third state narrowly won by Republican Donald Trump where she wants another look at the results. Dr. Stein earlier asked for recounts of the votes in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, although Mr. Trump’s victory is highly unlikely to be reversed in any of the states. While the election results show that Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by more 2 million votes, Mr. Trump has won more than the 270 Electoral College votes needed to become the nation’s 45th president. However, he claimed on Twitter early Sunday that he “won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.” He went on to claim, with no evidence presented, that there was “serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California.” Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a Democrat who supported Mrs. Clinton, responded: “When you make an allegation, put proof behind it.” Mr. Trump’s Twitter remarks added fuel to the growing push for the recount, igniting millions of dispirited Clinton voters and concerns about “cyber hacking,” possibly by foreign governments. Ms. Stein had netted $6.3 million by Monday to pay for the recounts, according to her campaign website. Meanwhile Mr. Trump, a former reality TV star, has spent much of the last few weeks setting up his new cabinet and interviewing candidates for top jobs in his administration.
On Wednesday, Mr. Trump said he will nominate his chief campaign fundraiser Steven Mnuchin to become treasury secretary. Mr. Mnuchin said the administration would make tax reform and trade pact overhauls top priorities as the treasury seeks a sustained pace of 3 percent to 4 percent economic growth. Mr. Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs banker, also signaled a desire to remove mortgage-finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from government ownership, a move that could have wide-ranging ramifications for how Americans pay for their homes, and said banking regulations should be eased to spur lending. Mr. Trump named Wilbur Ross, a billionaire known for his investments in distressed industries, as his nominee for commerce secretary. Both nominees will require confirmation by the U.S. Senate. President-elect Trump also on Wednesday asked Preet Bharara, the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan appointed by President Obama in 2009, to stay in his role. Mr. Bharara is known for pursuing a series of high-profile cases targeting public corruption and crime on Wall Street, and has won praise in New York for pursuing corruption investigations involving state and city politics, as well as financial crime. Mr. Trump is considering Goldman Sachs President and Chief Operating Officer Gary Cohn, a former commodities trader, to head his White House budget office or to fill another position, a Trump transition official said. Regulatory watchdog groups panned the Wall Street picks. Mr. Trump’s spokesman defended giving top economic jobs to Wall Street figures despite an election campaign pledge to “drain the swamp” of establishment figures in government. “There’s nobody else who understands the challenges that American workers and businesses face,” Mr. Trump’s spokesman Jason Miller said. Mr. Trump’s team also announced that Seema Verma has been chosen to be administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Mr. Trump also was working to fill out his foreign policy team, but no decision appeared imminent on who the next secretary of state will be. He met on Tuesday with former New
York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani about the top diplomatic post, a transition aide said, and later dined with 2012 Republican nominee Mitt Romney, at a French restaurant near Central Park on Tuesday night. Mr. Romney, who had slammed Mr. Trump during the campaign, made an impassioned statement in support of the president-elect after their meal. Mr. Miller said Mr. Trump told him that “he thought the dinner went really well” and that there was good chemistry between the men, who are still getting to know each other. Mr. Trump was to meet on Wednesday with another potential secretary of state pick, retired Marine Corps Gen. John Kelly. So far, President-elect Trump’s cabinet appointees, which all require Senate confirmation, include: • Steven Mnuchin, former Goldman Sachs executive and the campaign finance chairman for Mr. Trump’s campaign, as treasury secretary. Mr. Mnuchin has no political experience. • Elaine L. Chao, former labor secretary under President George W. Bush and wife of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, as transportation secretary. • Tom Price, orthopedic surgeon and six-term Republican congressman from Georgia who voted to repeal large provisions of the Affordable Care Act, as secretary of health and human services. • Wilbur Ross, former banker and investor said to be worth $2.9 billion according to Forbes, as commerce secretary. • Betsy DeVos, former chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party, as education secretary. • Nikki R. Haley, governor of South Carolina, as U.N. ambassador. • Dr. Ben Carson, neurosurgeon and 2016 Republican presidential candidate, as secretary of housing and urban development. • Mike Pompeo, a congressman from Kansas, current House Intelligence Committee member and former Army officer, as CIA director. • Jeff Sessions, a U.S. senator from Alabama as U.S. attorney general. Sen. Sessions’ nomination for a federal judgeship was rejected in 1986 because of his comments and views that were highly sympathetic to white nationalists and racists.