Saturday, March 23, 2013

Does the APS board even know, the trouble they're in?

The APS Board of Education is being sued; even the just elected.  I'm wondering if they even know about it.

Every year, the board signs contracts with Modrall and a handful of other law firms, for legal services on behalf of the board.  This year, the RFP, link, p24 section 4.4.4, requires law firms to offer the board a candid, forthright and honest appraisal of the trouble they're in, within thirty days of being sued by someone.  They deliver the evaluation in secret for a number of reasons, some less worthy than others.

In order to meet in secret, they have first to meet in public, and then adjourn to the meeting in secret (they don't record their meetings in secret - they are secret).  They have to tell the public, before they adjourn, what it is they intend to discuss.  If it is litigation, they state the case number and sometimes the plaintiff's name.

Based on my review of their record, the board has never met to be told by their lawyers, about the trouble that Marty Esquivel, Winston Brooks, Monica Armenta, and Steve Tellez, have gotten them into.

Maybe the rest of the board, especially new members, might have a problem with increasingly scarce operational funds being spent keeping the motley crew from feeling the consequences of their public corruption, rather than in classrooms.  Maybe they'll have a problem paying lawyers to insulate them from consequences, not because they're not guilty, but because they privileged.


But do they even know?

Has the contract with their lawyers been violated?

Has the Open Meetings Act been violated?

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

File a lawsuit on behalf of all taxpayers and students and find out. I think most judges would agree with you.