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Officials ‘knew’ of sexual allegations against chief

February 1, 2012

Chief Lisa Solomon

By DANIEL BLACKBURN and KAREN VELIE

Allegations of sexual misconduct by Paso Robles’ chief of police didn’t surprise everyone, according to a former councilman who said today that the city’s top management and council members have known of the assertions for years.

Lisa Solomon has been accused by current and former officers and non-sworn police department personnel of improper sexual touching and other related activities, setting unlawful ticket quotas, and subsequent retaliation against those who protested.

Solomon, 43, has declined to comment on the allegations, as have all other city officials. She is Paso Robles’ first female chief of police, appointed to her job in 2007 after rising through the ranks.

Gary Nemeth, who retired from the San Luis Obispo Police Department following a 30-year law enforcement career ended by injury, said others in the community have tried to raise alarms about Solomon and her public behavior, to no avail.

“I know they (top city officials) knew about all this, and they decided to let (Paso Robles City Manager Jim) App take care of it. Big mistake,” said  Nemeth. “They ignored the signals. Their whole life should be for the health, welfare and safety of the community, and I think they’ve let us down.”

Although current council members “are very aware” of the chief’s alleged behavior, said Nemeth, “it’s an App deal… no one will speak against him. App controls the city.”

Nemeth was a council member from 2000 to 2008, then ran and lost in the past two mayoral elections, so he said he’s probably considered a “malcontent” by some.

“But I care about this community, and when the police can’t perform their job safely, that should be a big red flag for people,” he said.

The department’s officer roster dropped to 1991 levels during the past few years. And new Solomon policies pose an immediate danger to the community and to the officers on the street, according to those interviewed by CalCoastNews.

Nemeth said that particular subject was raised during interviews of mayoral and council candidates by the Paso Robles Police Officers Association (PRPOA) in 2010.

“I’m certain the subject of city and department management policies, practices, and issues were raised in detail” with all candidates as with him, Nemeth said.

The PRPOA released on Tuesday a statement calling for a “safe working environment.”

The letter — which Nemeth called “an amazing step for a police association” — called on city officials to make changes. It read in part:  “We write this letter to publicly inform City Manager Jim App and the Paso Robles City Council that they are mandated by law to provide a safe working environment for their employees. The association membership expects to be treated with respect and dignity by our administration as is expected from us.”

Nemeth said the statement “is kind of unprecedented for Paso Robles. It a huge milestone for them to do this, because their jobs are on the line. The community needs to understand this.”


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Sounds like ya’ll need to take a lesson from the OSW (Occupy Wall Street) crowd and get yourself an OSHT! (Occupy Soloman’s Hot Tub) gathering and put the kibosh on these shenanigans.


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“And I Mean That!” lol


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As if his stupidity (or lie) somehow made everything hunky-dory… LOL!!


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Crusader

As if his stupidity (or lie) somehow made everything hunky-dory… LOL!!


UNCLEAR


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Thank you Gary Nemeth for sheding more light (clarity), insight and a bigger picture

It is the Mayor and City Council Member that should be first on the carpet!

Unfortunately, none of them have ground to stand on because no impartial investigation was ever done, all they have at this point is a hiding place behind the Chief and the public lynch mob. Theres an old saying, a hunter can kill two tigers with one stone, by letting the two fight until only one exhaused one survives.


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A hunter cannot kill a tiger with a stone. Your basic premise is false.


All of the officers have “ground to stand on” to file complaints and lawsuits. If an investigation had to be done first before a complaint or lawsuit could be filed, there would be very, VERY few investigations.


It is usually the complaints and lawsuits that prompt the investigations.


At this point, I don’t think the PR citizens should settle for anything less than a state audit and investigation. What is going on in PR is so much like the City of Bell (even with an attorney from Bell’s old legal firm!), the state is the logical entity to do the investigation.


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In a can of worms under the rug in the closet, is this small group of “good-ole-boys and girls”, who are

the reason this town is going down the drain. From pot holes to the huge problem with water, covering

up the hot springs, day by day business going under, college age kids leaving town, huge new gang

problem, drugs, many of the problems the families of Paso are experiencing because greedy “stupid

is as stupid does characters” that think just because they can pull off a few parades downtown and a

fair once a year they can control the destiny of the town. The entire culture of the Chamber, the City

Council, law enforcement, among a group of other departments is the exact reason the town is going

broke…


This should be a very wealthy town, but until folk rise up and boot out the likes of Jim App, the Mayor, Chief of police and the “good ole boys and girls” things are going to continue to go down the drain.


I think Tuesday Feb 7th many should go down to city hall and demand CHANGE…


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This really resonates with me right now:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMBZDwf9dok


It’s a minute and 41 seconds. Watch it. It’ll bring a nod of your head and maybe a slight grin to your face in the midst of all this crap…


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Crusader, Funny, but oh, so appropriate!


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When I first read the reports on this issue I immediately thought of the movie and the scene you just posted.


Well done Crusader


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You people are so funny, you have no idea how ridiculous you are. To sane people she’s still innocent until proven guilty but lets just let you all have your lynch mob fun and pretend that she’s been legally convicted. Women are inappropriately touched and harassed all the time. Often they will lose their jobs or retaliated against when they complain, this has always happened to us and it continues to happen. I’m a hundred years old so this wouldn’t happen to me now but I had one married boss that literally chased me around my desk. I had one boss that used to make terrible obscene remarks to me about my figure or clothes. With my last regular job I was constantly poked and touched at and hit on by a guy from Paso of all places (must be in the water). I did put an end to those things but it happens all the time. Granted, I wasn’t a police chief but these boys will get over it. Where’s all the outrage where’s all the ‘mad as hell and not going to take it anymore’ for us? With women it just gets swept under the rug, it would never make the news. Trust me, if these allegations are true the world will go on and the men will get over it. Regarding quotas, of course they are wrong but again this happens all the time. Ask those that live off of HWY 166 about ticket quotas, some of those that lived around there put up signs warning drivers about the ticket quotas. I saw that on the news a few months ago.


I’m not justifying any of this behavior, if these charges end up being true then she should be fired and she shouldn’t be allowed to receive any benefits. But Crusader, your link is bit over the top. Just a reminder, this isn’t Afghanistan, we are innocent until proven guilty.


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It depends on ones definition of “sane people”.


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You had me until the “you people”.


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I shouldn’t have said it like that. I meant the lynch mob, there are so many of them here that I didn’t want to list each one of them. I’m quite the wordsmith…not.


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Only a hundred? Don’t sell yourself short, I’m sure you’ve still got it!! One hundred is the new ninety, anyway. ;)))


I kid, I kid, although it’s a serious subject. In all seriousness, she is innocent until proven guilty.


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Well, I’m not really 100, it just seems like it.


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Not ridiculous at all to be mad about unacceptable behavior from a Chief of Police. Do you live in Paso? Do you care that a woman acting badly in a typically man’s position ruins it for those who hoped to attain similar positions? You do women no favor by looking the other way or criticizing those with opinions. No one here claims to be juror or judge. Soloman’s innocence or guilt will be proven, but ONLY because people such as those you criticize care enough to demand attention be given to possible wrongdoing. People that don’t care/act on their opinions deserve the staus quo.


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O.k. Typo, you state that everyone is wanting to lynch her and innocent till proven guilty. From my reading most here aren’t saying she is guilty, they are asking for an investigation. Investigating something does not prove guilt, a court of law does. Investigating is to make sure everything is on the up and up and if not then see if charges are warrented.


So in your infinite wisdom what would you do? Should people just keep ignoring that something seems to be going on? I’ve seen you postulate here on many occasions about the good ol boys network here on the central coast. Well don’t you think this may be a case of? If not then when do you or when do you not look into? Only when it agrees with your opinion?


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It absolutely could be the case (good ole boy network), she might be part of it or she could be a victim of it. Yes, people need to be involved I agree. If I lived there I’d be following this to find out about the facts of this issue and I probably will anyway. On the other hand I wouldn’t rush to judgement. I disagree with you about most aren’t saying that she’s guilty. In the other thread regarding this story there are over 500 posts and most of them have already convicted her, some have said some pretty mean things. The mean things might be warranted but there’s no way to know that right now. The opening paragraph in the first story pretty much set everyone off and most of them were on it like wild dogs on a kill.


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TQ…you STILL do not get it !

These are FASCISTS that thiunk torturing other people…especially the WEAK and vulnerable , is COOL.

These are SADO-MASOCHISTIC Monsters that we are dealing with !

Self-Entitled REPUBLICANS that think they OWN everytthing and can do WHATEVER the HE!! they want to !

Absolutely the WORST people in creation !

And WE have to deal with them !


We can’t ‘reason’ with them…So WHAT do we DO with them ?


( I know what my DAD did with NAZI’S in WWII ) .


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Innocence until proven guilty is applicable only in a court of law. Not everyone is entitled to such a presumption every time and this is one of those times when no presumption of innocence should apply.


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A true professional in any position of control should and is required to know how to avoid this kind of problem, I had that training in my FIRST human resources class. The fact that these allegations and turmoil are present is proof positive that the people in supervisory positions in this case are incompetent at the least. People get fired for incompetence all the time. Are they guilty of the charges? Who cares? Are the guilty of creating an untenable situation with their workforce and support, absolutely. Fire them and move on.


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You’re right. As a police chief one must comport themselves in a manner that is completely beyond reproach. In a case like this if Solomon’s subordinates were actually lying about her it would be plainly obvious. People would be speaking out strongly on her behalf from strictly a character reference standpoint. Instead we have silence. Law enforcement bill of rights or not she (or her lawyer) would be on fire refuting the allegations via the press. Instead she, App and others have bunkered-in and are laying low. That stinks.


The residents of Paso Robles deserve a thorough and impartial investigation. This is Solomon’s and likely App’s Waterloo. Let’s hope they’re not arrogant/ignorant enough to believe they can ride this one out because that would only do more damage to the City of Paso Robles.


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No doubt the current situation with Paso Robles City Manager App, Police Chief Solomon, and City Council has struck a sour chord among a lot of people. However, we are not considering the matter as jurors in the jury box. Maybe in the “Court of Public Opinion” people are sharing their experience and airing their opinions. That too is a Constitutional Right. As long as no one is calling for an illegal action against any person or property, it seems like Cal Coast News is an appropriate vehicle to speak one’s mind.


Nonetheless, I do enjoy your posts and call to reason. Discrimination and abuse of power is blind to gender, illegal and ethically wrong. Simply put, there seems to be an overarching concern among posters that this is unacceptable, has possibly persisted for years, is nothing new: “business as usual” with the same cast of characters, and once this blows over these “public servants” will continue.


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IF the citizens of Paso Robles allow App, Solomon and the City Council to sweep this crap under the rug, the local community will suffer as it has never suffered before.


Sooner or later (probably sooner) one of the victims is going to sue Solomon and the City of Paso Robles. They’ll win and it will open the floodgates to many more lawsuits, While this will have the advantage of finally purging App, Solomon, et. al. (the City Council will have no choice) it’s going to take a terrible toll on Paso Robles.


Add to that the growing gang problem largely due to Solomon’s (and likely the rest of the PRPD command staff’s) ineptitude/priorities and it’s clearer than ever that this is the time to take a stand.


“I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it any longer!” See you next Tuesday night. Please bring some friends wearing RED!


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If the citizens of Paso allow App, Solomon and the City Counsil to sweep this crap under the rug now…they deserve everything the future will bring.


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Is everyone here aware of: https://tips.fbi.gov/ ?


Please make liberal, factual use of it. Thank you.


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If you do use the form provided in the link above, please remember that providing false information to the FBI might get you tazed…oh wait….that’s what happens when you let your dog off it’s leash in a park. Nevermind…


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Paso Mayor Duane [“that’s news to me”] Picanco was on 1230am this afternoon for about an hour. What a disappointment. Of course Dick Mason threw him a bunch of hard-hitting questions like “Who ya gonna root for in the Super Bowl?” and “Will Paso have a fireworks display in July?”


Who CARES?! Paso’s City Manager, Attorney, and Police Chief [probably others] are working behind-the-scenes trying to cover their own rear ends while they continue to say “no comment.”


There WAS a telling comment, though, when the Mayor said something to the effect that if/when this matter comes before the council, they will act as jury and someone “could get terminated.” He wouldn’t elaborate of course but hopefully the councilmen are listening to the public and hopefully they will act accordingly when the time comes! FIRE Jim App. FIRE Iris Yang. FIRE Lisa Solomon Chitty.


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We citizens need to hold the city council accountable and demand they take control of the city back from Jim App. He seems to forget he’s the hired help, not the master of the house. To have kept Chief Salomon around when so many, including those in power, knew about her behavior indicates he was either getting something special from the chief or he wanted a compromised person in that job who would question some of his “other” activities. Either way they both need to go or else we need a whole new city council. The alternative is to file a civil rights complaint (the officers need to do this) with the FBI. They can come investigate and who knows what dirty laundry will be aired.


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The FBI…This is the same organization investigating Kelly Gearhart and we think they are gonna do something about Lisa Solomon? I’m not going to hold my breath.


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OK, so your fire the Chief and you fire the City Manager. What do you do about the rest of the police force? Don’t you need to weed out the willing participants, too? (ie: anyone who did not jump out of the hot tub, so to speak.) Well, let’s just be kind and say don’t fire anyone who stayed in that hot tub just to protect his job. I’m just saying….and ain’t it nasty.


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As I understand the process, the city council votes to give the city manager a raise based on the city manager’s accomplishments and performance. In this case Jim App was due 5% increase per year beginning in 2008. Mr. App deferred his approved raises from 2008-2011. His current base salary is $155,744 and he is due to receive a 15% raise on July 1, 2012, bringing his base salary to $179,541. Additionally, the Paso Robles City website has the salary range information as of 8/5/10 and shows the current base pay for each of the Directors, the City Council members and the Mayor; all staff are due for pay increases in June 2012, as their raises were also deferred. These current base salaries total to more than $1,000,000 per year. This seems excessive for a city with a population of 30,000.


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With salaries like that WHO would want to rock the boat!!!


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Did he sound like he meant that?


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What is it going to take for the enforcement agencies that are supposed to be the checks and balances of this county to actually do their jobs?

The corruption and the level of good ol’ boys politics in this county is astonishing.

We complain to the right authorities and yet nothing gets done.

What can we do? Anyone have any other ideas?


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Have you written to Attorney General Kamala Harris yet? Even if you don’t live in Paso, the more letters from SLO county residents…the better!


Attorney General’s Office

California Department of Justice

Attn: Public Inquiry Unit

P.O. Box 944255

Sacramento, CA 94244-2550


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If you suspect public corruption you can report it to the Los Angeles office of the FBI. But you will need more than supposition. Now if they fail to put Solomon on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation that will give you some indication of the depth of the corruption. The aggrieved officers need attorneys to look out for them and to make the appropriate referrals to outside agencies.


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Very true, Gordo. I think as others suggest the city manager, chief of police and city council will try to deal with this by ignoring it in the hopes that it will just fade away. I don’t have any confidence in the Paso City Government any longer.


Prolonged and serious taxpayer outrage and/or lawsuits (filed by the right lawyers) hitting the city hard are the only things that will bring justice. I hope the law enforcement union is smart enough to take a vote this weekend and publicly announce a vote of no confidence for Solomon early on Monday to give local press some time to react before the council meeting.


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