Arroyo Grande tape missing 80 minutes

September 9, 2014
Arroyo Grande City Manager Steve Adams

Arroyo Grande City Manager Steve Adams

By KAREN VELIE and DANIEL BLACKBURN

Surveillance video provided by Arroyo Grande officials showing interior and exterior views of City Hall on July 3 — when a reported late night rendezvous involving two top employees occurred — is missing 80 critical minutes.

The videos were provided to CalCoastNews in response to a public records request seeking additional information on a police response to reports of a missing person. When officers arrived at City Hall shortly before midnight, they discovered City Manager Steve Adams looking “disheveled,” and a partially dressed Community Development Director Teresa McClish peeking from behind her boss’s door. Adams told police McClish was not there, and then became angry with officers, according to officer reports.

On Sept. 2, CalCoastNews made a public records request for a copy of the official surveillance video from five cameras inside City Hall, and three positioned outside the building, spanning an eight-hour period, 4 p.m. through midnight on July 3.

Teresa McClish

Teresa McClish

City Clerk Kelly Wetmore responded by providing a copy that is missing several segments including from 10:07 p.m. through 11:28 p.m., a time during which Adams and McClish were inside the building. (City Hall videos appear to be time-stamped 37 minutes faster than local time.)

Additionally, City Hall camera eight is missing almost an hour, and video from camera six was not included in the city made video.

Wetmore has not yet responded to a public records request for the missing segments, and a request to provide an explanation about the missing segments in the original request.

Arroyo Grande has two sets of surveillance cameras: eight city hall cameras and 10 Blue Watch camera units. In addition to the 80-minute segment missing from the City Hall cameras, a public records request for copies of the Blue Watch surveillance video made from a four-lens camera outside Robert’s Restaurant resulted in a city video that was also missing segments.

In the original tape provided by the city, the video from Camera two skips from 20:59:59 and starts back up at 23:00:00, while video from lens four skips from 20:59:59 to 22:00:00. The other two lenses have no long skips.
An analysis of the video indicates several significant portions of both videos where either delete or not copied.

Chief Steve Annibali explained the missing segments as issues with the wireless feed, and then provided complete video copies taken from the hard drive inside the Blue Watch camera unit, which included the previously missing segments.

Each of the city’s ten Blue Watch surveillance camera units sends a wireless signal to a tower above the city, which is then sent to the police department where a copy of the wireless feed is kept. Another copy not impacted by wireless interference is kept on the hard-drive, Annibali said.

Nevertheless, employees with Security Lines US, the company that installed the cameras, said that segments missing because of wireless feeds would be uniform amongst the four camera lenses on each unit, impeaching Annibali’s explanation.

CalCoastNews is providing portions of the dozens of hours of video received through public records requests. The video includes time stamps that correlate with some of the following times. At the end of the video, note that camera lens four is missing a segment between 8:59:59 and 10:00:00.

At 8:27 p.m., Adams and McClish leave the grand opening of Roberts Restaurant, which is across the street from City Hall, and walk to Rooster Creek for another glass of wine.

At 9:39, McClish walks across Mason Street and gets into her car parked at City Hall.

At 9:46, Adams crosses Mason Street about two car lengths from the brightly lit crosswalk. As he nears McClish’s car, several people leave Roberts Restaurant. Adams then turns and runs back across the street.

At 9:51, the people who departed Roberts Restaurant drive away, McClish flashes her car lights and Adams dashes back across the street towards McClish’s car.

Several segments of the Blue Watch video:


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This is getting so splintered with who is involved in the cover up. The incident is actually now less important than who is involved in covering it up. Is the public really supposed to believe of the entire night, from both cameras, only the important pieces are missing? What are the odds? Investigate who had access to the tapes. The complete gauntlet thrown up by the city to cover someone’s affair is now growing out of control. This needs an outside investigation. There must be more to this if so many fools are willing to lie about a tacky drunken late night tryst. Let the chips fall where they may. Anyone found to be involved with any cover-up needs to be fired, period! No benefits, pension, severance, no reward for being void of common sense. This town really needs to clean house and soon.


What? Government officials trying to cover up their wrongdoings? I’m shocked!


I am 100% certain that if the missing footage showed their innocents, it would not be missing.


This is absolutely hilarious! The people get what they deserve. Meanwhile, schmucks like these governmental hacks continue to pass, rules, laws, and regulations that most people abide by and accept with barely a whimper.


To [almost] all government officials, bight me!


“….and accept with barely a whimper”. Well put, Perspicacious, well put!

Your remark about rules, laws, regulations hits home, right smack dab, ten – X ring dead center.


My favorite of such peeves are the bag ban, building codes arbitrarily interpreted, zoning and planning issues, and runaway income/property/health care taxes.


BTW, my part time and future home, rural Bell County near Killeen, TX does not suffer from the first FIVE of my favorites list of seven items. A slice of America, not Kalifornia.


Glad you will be guarding the border for us!


To the entire City Council: this has gone from warm, to hot, and now to potentially boiling over. How much more is it going to take before you start acting in the best interests of your Citizens?


It is Explosive if there is missing footage, especially missing footage from certain camera angles, and especially if it involves the time period where Adams and McLish were at City Hall. To determine if there is missing footage, why that footage is missing, why that footage was not turned over for a public record request, and who might potentially be involved with the missing footage, you absolutely HAVE TO immediately place the following individuals on administrative leave:


– Adams (involved party)

– McClish (involved party)

– Annibali (administrator who has custodial control and responsibility of the footage in question)


If this has in fact occurred, there are potential criminal ramifications.


If video footage is missing, you HAVE TO determine if anyone else was involved in the chain-of-custody for this footage. Most importantly, you HAVE TO hire a third-party to conduct a truly independent investigation.


If there is missing footage, there are also at least three hypothetical but prudent questions that should be explored:


– was anyone from the City’s IT department involved?

– was any attorney associated with our City involved?

– was anyone from our own City Council involved?


We need the Grand Jury to get to the bottom of all this. There’s no need to pay for another investigation which will almost certainly be suspect given that the council would have hired the investigator just as happened with the first investigation. This is damaging our city and we need to resolve it and move on as quickly as possible.


Just do it!


Thank you for keeping us posted of the incoming information Cal Coats.

Just trying to get some clarification of the missing video segments.


Cal Coast News was provided a copy of videos but the copy is missing several

segments including from 10:07 p.m. through 11:28 p.m., a time during which

Adams and McClish were inside the building. (City Hall videos appear to be

time-stamped 37 minutes faster than the actual time as visible on police records.)?


Camera 8 is missing an hour, camera 6 video footage was not included? And

CCN has yet to receive a response as to why these videos and segments are

missing?


Blue watch cameras in the village consisting or 8 city hall cameras and 10 cameras

posted around the village are also “missing segments” ?


A analysis of these videos has shown portions of the videos were either not copied

or deleted. Annibali did or did not provide a complete copy of video?


The company, Security Lines Inc, has stated if there is a wireless feed problem

then it would consistent in all the cameras and not scattered at different times?


My conclusion is this travesty of political scandal continues and the Police Chief,

Steve Annibali, is involved. Wow no surprise there!!! Getting extremely tired of these

city officials using excuses as to why or why not things are done correctly in the

City of Arroyo Grande.


I know, they’re with Lois Learner’s Emails!


The same thing happened in the city San Luis Obispo when police beat a man mistaken for breaking into his own home, even when his pictures were in the home, costing the city $195,000.


“According to court records, police officers allege that none of their on-scene radios or police cameras were working during the arrest of Milne. In addition, San Luis Obispo Police officials claim that interrogation room audio and video recording equipment malfunctioned during the questioning of Milne, leaving no recordings available for the trial.”


http://calcoastnews.com/2009/12/san-luis-obispo-slated-to-pay-195000-for-alleged-police-brutality/


HOW CONVENIENT THAT ONLY THOSE CAMERAS IN A POSTION OMITTED AND THE VERY TIME FRAME OMITTED TO PROVE OR DISPROVE THE ALLEGATIONS.


IF YOU PURPOSELY FALSIFY A PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST IS IT A CRIME?


IF SO, A CRIME HAS BEEN OBVIOUSLY COMMITTED AND THE APPROPRIATE HEADS SHOULD ROLL!


Yes, it is a crime.


Hey guys: I am the past resident of A.G. I am no longer there and wish you the best of luck at the council meeting. GO GET EM! AND DON’T LET UP!


Stay tuned in, more film at 11.


I bet many will be following your lead, and moving out of this corrupt town. But your are right, we can’t give up and be intimidated by their power.


Most important, DON’T VOTE FOR CHARTER CITY!