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City Council Legal Review Committee <br />Meeting Minutes <br />February 21, 2019 <br />Page 2 of 4 <br />We ought to have a more formal way or framework for what to do in these <br />situations. <br />City Attorney Kelly stated there is a benefit in having a formal process so that no <br />one council member is in a position to act on something alone. <br />City Manager Balser stated it would be useful to have a person file something in <br />writing if they have a formal complaint. <br />Councilmember Leh stated it does give persons a place to file complaints about <br />how they were treated or discriminated against and it gives the councilmember a <br />process to specify. <br />City Attorney Kelly stated there are specific findings set out in the Charter that <br />must be met to remove the judge; that is not the case with the Prosecutor, City <br />Manager, or City Attorney. The process will need to recognize that difference. <br />Cotton -Baez stated it also minimizes errors or miscommunication if the complaint <br />is put it in writing. <br />Councilmember Loo asked who would handle the investigation. City Manager <br />Balser stated it could be modeled on the ethics process with an advisory judge. <br />Councilmember Leh stated not everything requires an investigation but some do <br />need a formal investigation from an external attorney or judge. <br />City Manager Balser stated Boulder and Ft. Collins have a reciprocal agreement <br />to review each other's complaints. She noted due process also needs to be <br />followed. Councilmember Leh asked to whom the report goes in the end. Staff <br />can get more information on how that works. <br />Councilmember Leh wants to know how the process is initiated, who it goes to, <br />what kind of investigation/review there is, what is sent back, is it formal findings, <br />is the report in writing, etc. Is it public information or not. Does the entity asking <br />for the inquiry retain outside help? He noted some require more investigation <br />while some are more an attorney grievance process. It needs to be determined if <br />these are just squabbles between courtroom personnel or are they more serious. <br />However, it should be as simple as can be. <br />Cotton -Baez suggested another City Attorney looking into it may be best so other <br />judges and prosecutors aren't investigating each other; they might be reluctant to <br />act in that capacity. <br />Councilmember Loo stated we don't want to complicate the complaint process <br />with the evaluation process. <br />