A San Diego Superior Court judge last week ordered the Sweetwater Union High School District to turn over documents that it withheld from a community member in a California Public Records Act request.
San Diego Superior Court Judge Randa Trapp will then review the documents to determine whether or not they are confidential and cannot be released to the public.
Sweetwater district critic Kevin O’Neill filed a lawsuit in 2013 when the district did not release invoices, reports and other documentation he had asked for regarding the district’s dealings with consulting firm ESI International.
O’Neill said the district told him that it couldn’t release any reports to him because none were created.
Former superintendent Ed Brand and an ex-school board that saw four of five board members indicted on corruption charges spent more than $200,000 for ESI’s services.
ESI International was hired by the district to conduct investigative services.
The district has until the end of November to turn in all requested documentation to the judge.
O’Neill submitted his records request after he questioned why Brand had made a request for investigative services because human resources are the ones who conduct background checks and are the ones who should request such service, O’Neill said.
In December 2012, the district allocated $50,000 to ESI .
Then in August 2013, the board approved an additional $65,000 O’Neill said.
O’Neill also said during the 2013-2014 school year the board of trustees allocated $100,000 for the next school year.
“I questioned their spending,” O’Neill said. “I said ‘alright let’s see what you’re getting for your money’ and so far I don’t know what they received for their money because they’re saying there never was a report.”
Attorney Cory Briggs, who represented O’Neill, said the court’s decision is a victory for open government.
“The public has every right to know how the district’s money is being spent, especially when it appears that they’re using it to conduct sercret investigations of people in the community who are voicing their concerns,” he said. “It looks retaliatory and the public is entitled to know how much money the district wasted being retaliatory.
Briggs added that the investigation was a waste of money.
“One of the biggest things to come out of it as that we spent tens of thousands of dollars and it turns out the investigator didn’t do a report.”
O’Neill said the new school board had a chance to settle with him by releasing the documents, but they had refused.
Sweetwater board President Frank Tarantino said a settlement was never offered.
“I have to tell you that I do not remember any offers to settle being brought to the board,” he said. “Yes, this case often appeared on closed sessions agendas, but nothing other than ‘the issue is still pending’ was presented.”
Tarantino said the district will turn over the documents in question to the court.
O’Neill said he pursued the lawsuit because decisions like this should be held in the open.
“It is in everyone’s best interest that our government (business) should be done out in front of everyone,” he said.
There should be very little that is kept from us both in terms of the decision-making process and in how they spend their money.”
