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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClaim 787 - K.Doran CITY OF PALM DESERT CITY CLERK DEPARTMENT STAFF REPORT REQUEST: CLAIM AGAINST THE CITY (#787) BY KENNETH DORAN IN AN UNSPECIFIED AMOUNT SUBMITTED BY: Lauri Aylaian, City Manager DATE: March 23, 2017 CONTENTS: • Staff Report • Recommendations of Claims Adjusters and Staff • Claim No. 787 Recommendation By Minute Motion, reject the Claim and direct that the Claimant be so notified. Strategic Plan Objective This request represents routine conduct of municipal affairs; there is no specific Strategic Plan Goal associated. Background Based on a review of the subject Claim and the recommendation of the Claims Adjuster, Risk Manager, City Attorney, and staff, it is recommended that the Claim be rejected. Discussion of this item should be held in Closed Session pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(2), potential litigation. Fiscal Analysis City of Palm Desert participates in the self-insurance pool of the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority (CJPIA). Action to reject the subject Claim does not have a fiscal impact on the City at this time. Submitted by: Lauri Aylaian, City Manager rd k Attachments (as noted) rr CARL WARREN&COMPANY C a ms Maragemen:and Solu::ors February 9, 2017 TO: City of Palm Desert ATTENTION: City staff RE: Claim : Doran vs. Palm Desert Claimant Kenneth Doran Member : City of'Palm Desert Date Rec'd by Mbr : 1/12/17 Date of Event : 7/17/16 CW File Number : 1954864 TVQ Please allow this correspondence to acknowledge receipt of the captioned claim. Please take the following action: • CLAIM REJECTION: Send a standard rejection letter to the claimant. Please include a Proof of Mailing with your rejection notice to the claimant. An exemplar copy of a Proof of Mailing is attached. Please provide us with a copy of the Notice of Rejection and copy of the Proof of Mailing. If you have any questions feel free to contact the assigned adjuster or the undersigned claims specialist. Very Truly Yours, CARL WARREN & CO. Tu'no-Ovid M. Vora-v Timothy M. Varon Claims Specialist An Employee-Owned Company O. ?cx ?4 1 Tustin, CA 92781 Tel: 657-622•-4200 -C7x: 855-683-3)55 j www.corlwarren.ccm CA .-icense No: 2607296 w £���� CARL WARREN&COMPANY C!a:ms Mar.ager•ent a a Scl,;tiv s January 20, 2017 Kenneth Doran 43300 Elkhorn Trail, Apt. #G-18 Palm Desert, CA 92211 RE: Claim • Doran vs. Palm Desert Claimant : Kenneth Doran Member • City of Palm Desert Date Rec'd by Mbr : 1/12/17 Date of Event : 7/17/16 CW File Number • 1954864 TVQ Please be advised the above-referenced claim was referred to our office for investigation. We are the liability Claims administrators for the City of Palm Desert. This matter is being handled under the file number provided above and is being investigated by our Claims Adjuster Timothy Varon. Upon completion of the investigation, we will contact you concerning our determination of liability. Very Truly Yours, CARI. WARREN & CO. -ri vwo-0ty M. Varoin.. Timothy M. Varon Claims Examiner 657-622-4287 cc: Member Agency: City of Palm Desert An Employee-Owned Company _._Dx 241 I u t ! CA 9;%_i 1o. ,=Ix. ✓1.) ;�:ti.. 2ou,'295 vtA old/ver&& - ' a``l�'" Aar, CITY OF PALM DESERT I 141 3. ASSIGNED CLAIM NO. City of Palm Desert Attn: Jan Harnik, Mayor 73510 Fred Waring Drive Palm Desert, CA 92260 Dear Mayor Hamik: As per requirements of the California Tort Claims Act (California Government Code Sections 810-996.6), this letter serves as intent to file a lawsuit seeking unlimited amount in damages in a civil case. All correspondence can be sent to: Kenneth Doran OCCURRENCE GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM The 2012 campaign was a good year for me to run for city council as Bob Speigel was seeking reelection and he was one who used his position on the council inappropriately and illegally. I had just gone public with my information on city corruption which would have given me a great platform along with other issues on which to run. I went to the city of Palm Desert to get the materials to run for city council. I submitted the nomination signatures to Rachelle Klassen, City Clerk for verification. Klassen told me that I could not submit just the nomination signatures that I must submit all the materials at once. Therefore, I returned another day with all the materials for submission. I, subsequently, received a call from Klassen stating that I was one signature short on the nomination form. I was surprised that so many people who signed thought they were registered to vote. I was upset and made the comment that there has to be a way to verify the signatures. Klassen did not say anything to me to specify whether a method existed. Nor did she tell me that I could come down to pick-up the nomination petition to solicit one (1) more signature. Moreover, further investigation indicates there is no law stating all the materials must be submitted all at once. Klassen is arbitrarily setting rules that have no basis for existence. This 2014 campaign was not a good year for me to run for office because the physical therapy was not working and the prospect of going to the hospital for a back operation was high. Nonetheless, I went to the city of Palm Desert to get the materials from Klassen to run for city council. She told me to be sure and put myself down as a signatory on the nomination form. I said you did not tell me that the last time, if so I would not have been one signature short. Her response: Oh well. I was nice and did not say anything else. I was wondering why she did not tell me to come down put myself down as a signatory on the nomination form in the 2012 campaign as I submitted all the documents before 3:00 pm. More importantly, I stated again that I wish there was a way to verify the nomination signatures before submitting the documents to the City Clerk's office. Her response: NO 60 :9 Nd 1 NVI L1UZ V J "lIi3S30 N1Vd 1 301130 S,)111313 A .1.10 03A1303a I was able to get enough signatures to get on the ballot; however, given my current physical condition I could not launch a viable campaign. The 2016 campaign was a very good year to run for city council as I previously took action to position myself for an effective run. So I went to the city of Palm Desert to get the materials from Klassen to run for city council. It had become routine by now so everything went fine. Again I stated that I wish there was any way to verify the nomination signatures before submitting the documents. Her response: Ms. Klassen and Ms. Mendoza did not say anything. As stated in Klassen's restraining order declaration, I did arrive on July 15u'to submit the paperwork on the last day only to be informed that I had two (2) additional days. However, in contrast to Klassen's perception, what I was thinking was how I wished I could have the signatures verified so I would know whether I qualified for the ballot. As Klassen stated, I left with materials in hand to come back two (2) days later. I returned on July 17u'to submit the material as required. Subsequently, I received a call from Ms. Klassen indicating that I was five signatures short. After that phone call, I called the Riverside County Registrar of Voter's Office to complain about the inability to verify the signatures before submitting the documents to the City Clerk's office. spoke with a supervisor and told her what had happened about the nomination signatures and that it had previously happened in the 2012 campaign. This is when she stated: "All that you have to do is call our office and we will go through the signatures with you before you submit the documents to the city clerk's office." I immediately became silent, then I said "I'm sorry, did you say that I can call your office and you will help me verify the signatures over the phone." She said"yea". Then I said, do the city clerk's offices know this. She said "I don't know." She said it in a tone and manner to make me think that this is common knowledge (a basic understanding in a city clerk's office). The call concluded by her stating that she would recheck the signatures for me, but absent that, there was nothing else they could do as they have performed their duties appropriately. I thank her for her time. For the rest of the night and several days afterward, I was stunned. I did not know what to think. I have never had an argument with Ms. Klassen before and it seemed illogical that she would purposely make it difficult for me to seek office as such actions might even be criminal. However: Never was I told that I could submit the material early for evaluation and that I could seek additional signatures if necessary, especially since I inquired about this capability on numerous occasions over three (3) election cycles. If I had been told this information, I would have submitted the documents on July 15'h so that I would have had to two (2)extra days to get (what we know now is five (5) signatures)to get the required twenty (20) signatures to qualify for the ballot. I may not be the smartest person alive, but this is simply a no-brainer as pre-verification would eliminate the uncertainty. Moreover, since I was one (1) signature short in a previous election, how could I have not taken advantage of the opportunity to remove all doubt about my ability to qualify for the ballot? This simply is not logical from a reasonable prudent person's perspective. 2 Never was I told that I could contact Riverside County Registrar of voters directly and they would go through the signatures with me.The effort required to make a phone call from the comfort of my home to verify the signatures would be small in comparison to the effort previously given to prepare for the 2016 election (e.g., filing the law suits, communicating with the media, preparing legislative goals and activities, gathering the signatures, etc.) Never in Klassen's restraining order declaration does she state that I asked these questions or that she provided that information to me. It would have been so simple for Klassen to state the following: 1. If you would like to verify the signatures on your nomination form before you submit them, you can contact the Riverside County Registrar of Voters and they will go through them with you over the phone. Or 2. If you submit your nomination form early, I will verify the signatures that you have so that you can go back to seek additional signature as it can be difficult to get valid signatures. This would have been so simple and clear to understand. Unfortunately, this did not occur. I do believe that the City Clerk with a top salary of$170,000 per year has a professional responsibility to give the public accurate information. I have tried to figure out what would be Klassen's motive to prevent me from getting on the ballot. Over six(6) years ago, I gave a presentation before the city council in which I stated, It is wrong to give jobs to people who were unqualified and there are current employees who make over a$100,000 a year that have these jobs and do not even possess a college degree." While I do not know for a fact, I would be willing to wager that Klassen does not hold a college degree and therefore, Klassen's motive may be her desire to protect her$170,000 a year job at the expense of democracy. As provided by California Government Code Sections 810-996.6, the city of Palm Desert has 45 days to respond to this claim. Thank you, in advance, for your timely attention to this matter. 'n rely, eth Doran 3