Oceano CSD director quits over alleged harassment, stalking

March 25, 2022

By KAREN VELIE

An Oceano Community Services District director resigned following a board meeting on Wednesday at which she accused a community member of politically motivated harassment and stalking. Director Cynthia Replogle also accused district officials of failing to protect her.

Specifically, Replogle said a man had followed her, filmed her jogging and sent her harassing emails.

Replogle had asked the district to take out a retraining order or send Clark D’Souza a cease and desist order, as the district had previously done in 2017, when D’Souza threatened staff members at the district office. In addition, with the district resuming in person meetings, Replogle requested security onsite.

“I decided not to be a sitting duck at the dais for someone who has the means and intent to cause harm, when there are no efforts to keep him from following through on his threats,” Replogle said. “Now my fight will be to defeat this type of political violence, where one side gets its way through fear of harm rather then reasoned debate.”

After Replogle noted her concerns to the district, General Manager Will Clemens looked into the alleged issues. In the end, the district determined the emails were sent to the entire board of directors, and not just to Replogle; the emails were critical of multiple directors and that D’Souza had not harassed or threatened anyone inside the district office in years.

For a judge to approve a civil restraining order, the plaintiff must provide evidence of unlawful violence or a recent credible threat of violence. A credible threat needs to seriously scare, annoy, or harass someone with no valid reason for it.

“We evaluated if there was a specific threat with legal counsel, who determined there was not,” Clemens said. “D’Souza is an equal opportunity offender, he complains about a number of officials. I believe our district responded appropriately to all alleged threats.”

D’Souza’s history and YouTube channel show a man critical of public officials on both the right and the left, and who at times appears delusional and aggressive.

In the past, law enforcement has determined D’Souza’a actions were not criminal, and suggested his targets get restraining orders.

In 2017, the Oceano CSD requested a restraining order against D’Souza because of his “hostile and extremely agitated” behavior. The district complaint also detailed the aggressive behavior of D’Souza’s dog, a 90-pound Rhodesian Ridgeback he would bring to the district’s office. The court granted a temporary restraining order that lasted from June 25, 2017 through Aug. 3, 2018.

In 2017, D’Souza discussed cutting SLO County Supervisor Lynn Compton’s face, then cut up a photo of Compton, according to a YouTube video. Deputies questioned D’Souza, but did not file criminal charges. Compton later applied for and received a restraining order against D’Souza.

In 2018, D’Souza posted several threatening videos on YouTube about activist Julie Tacker. Tacker reported the threats to law enforcement and YouTube, which removed the videos because of the content.

During the past two years, D’Souza has posted videos critical of Replogle, Tacker, SLO County Sheriff Ian Parkinson, former SLO mayor Heidi Harmon and many others.

In his videos regarding Replogle, D’Souza says he disagrees with Replogle’s objection to blue ribbons in support of law enforcement. He then accuses Replogle of jogging past his home and stopping outside his window to stretch in order to intimidate him, district staff is aware of the allegation.

“What is she doing jogging down my street?” D’Souza says on his “Bong Hit Diaries” on YouTube. “She stops right in the middle of the street and does all these creepy stretches. She is an inciter. All these people who are right wing nut jobs and left wing nut jobs are both extremes, do you understand?”