On May 21, King City City Manager Mike Weston formally notified the City of King City, Mayor Rachel Kazmierski, City Attorney Peter Watts and attorney Edward Trompke of potential tort claims against the City of King City “and individuals and elected officials.” According to the tort claims notice, these individuals include Mayor Kazmierski, City Councilor Jessica Braverman, and Kazmierski’s husband John Kazmierski, who is a King City police officer.
In the tort claims notice, Weston states that he has been the city manager for nine-plus years, and “over the course of the last 12 months, there has been a dramatic decline in the overall functionality of the organization, the consequence of multiple hostilities from internal and external parties, constant interruptions of business, personal threats, personal attacks, baseless accusations against me and other City employees, and displays of constant bullying behavior toward me, the staff, the City Attorney, and some councilors.”
According to the notice, the “workplace situation” stems chiefly from the City Council’s adoption of a Master Plan and Transportation System Plan for Kingston Terrace after Metro approved King City bringing the area west of the city into its urban growth boundary. The claim states that “some community members” not in support of the plan used multiple tactics “to pressure elected officials, city staff, or residents inside or outside of King City to halt the eventual development of lands inside the UGB…”
The notice accuses Mayor Kazmierski, Councilor Braverman, and Steven Gearhart (now a city councilor), Mike Meyer, Karl Swanson, Russel Powell, Dawn Mobley, Sandra Cunningham, Rachel Ager, Gary Davis, “and to a lesser extent” Janet Black, Debbie Walk, Susan Meyer and Amanda Kartner of engaging “in retaliation, ongoing harassment, slander and defamation, denial of contractual and due process rights, along with other malicious actions directed at myself and other staff members of King City.”
Weston also accused Officer Kazmierski, plus Councilor Braverman and Mayor Kazmierski since before taking their seats as councilors, of coordinating “to erode our workplace environment sharing personal communications, spreading false rumors, slander and libel and retaliating against us…”
Furthermore, Weston stated that “the latest attacks have also included the City’s Legal Counsel, who was accused by City Officials of providing improper legal advice to me after the May 13th City Council meeting.”
The notice also details allegations of unethical conduct, accusing Mayor Kazmierski of having a conflict of interest “pertaining to the monetary gains/losses of her spouse officer Kazmierski;” Mayor Kazmierski and Councilors Braverman and Gearhart of violating serial quorum laws on multiple occasions; and Mayor Kazmierski of participating “in a motion and vote to conduct 3rd party investigation into the City Manager, City Attorney, and City Departments.”
The notice asserts that “the damages to be asserted against the public body, its agents and officers, is not less than $250,000.”
