Oakley City Council to vote on censure of Fuller, calling on him to resign

OAKLEY An Oakley councilmember is facing censure and a call to resign for bullying and retaliatory actions against city staff after a third-party inspection discovered that he had allegedly engaged in such activity George Fuller Ed D was reelected to the Oakley city council Courtesy of George Fuller On Tuesday the City Council is set to potentially take the action against Councilmember George Fuller The issue was initially raised in September when Mayor Shannon Shaw proposed it as a future agenda item Shaw who authored the censure resolution disclosed Fuller s fresh conduct reflected a pattern of behavior directed not just toward staff but also toward other councilmembers elected officers and constituents I think it s critical for people to understand why we re doing this The only reason this is coming about is specifically because of his actions toward staff Shaw communicated this news organization I want to make sure that I m letting staff know that we in the city of Oakley will not tolerate this behavior at any level up to and including ourselves We have to hold ourselves just as accountable as you would expect our city staff to hold themselves accountable Fuller was first elected in He represents District which covers a few areas in Creekside Park Dali Court Emerson Ranch Park and Riata Park His term expires in November When appealed to comment on Tuesday s vote and accusations against him Fuller referred questions to his lawyer As of press time Friday no response was received from Fuller s representative While the City Council cannot remove an elected official unless a criminal conviction or other legal disqualification occurs it can take formal moves to express disapproval according to the city Along with a call for his resignation in order to protect the integrity of the City of Oakley and restore inhabitants confidence the resolution also encourages Fuller to participate in professional advance on workplace harassment prevention and ethics Following accusations of bullying and retaliatory actions against staff Oakley initiated an independent third-party assessment into the accusations While no details of that study have been made inhabitants as of Friday including who conducted the research and at what cost a staff summary stated that it was completed and ascertained that Councilmember Fuller engaged in bullying and retaliatory conduct Such conduct is inconsistent with the duties of elected office undermines the ability of staff to perform their work erodes populace trust in the City Council and has required the City to devote considerable time and financial information to investigations and responses a staff record stated When questioned about the third-party inspection Oakley Assistant City Manager Danielle Navarro disclosed staff could not comment on the matter Per the supplemental review the item is one being brought forth by the Mayor and staff is not commenting or providing input on the item noted Navarro in an email to this news organization The details of the probe are not disclosable City Attorney Derek Cole noted that a censure is purely a political report about a member of an elected body by a majority of that body City administration and staff have not nor will not take any position on the proposed censure declared Cole Consequently they should not be urged to participate in any way when the item is considered At Tuesday s meeting and prior to a vote by the council Fuller will be given the right to rebut the grounds for the censure proposed The citizens will also be given the opportunity to comment and then Fuller will have additional time to speak