Blog post about Digital Cornerstone v. Kevin Carmony
Blog posts from SD Education Report blog
Blog posts re San Diego Ethics Commission from Enron by the Sea
Judge Judith Hayes' decision in Carmony case
Blog posts from SD Education Report blog
Blog posts re San Diego Ethics Commission from Enron by the Sea
Judge Judith Hayes' decision in Carmony case
San Diego Attorney Gil Cabrera
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Central
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Central
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Guillermo Cabrera
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Cabrera
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Charles R. Civil Jury Tria
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Cabrera
05/21/10 09:00AM C-66 CV
Hayes, Charles R. Civil Jury
Tria
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C)Sackett National Holdings
Guillermo Cabrera
City of San Diego Ethics Commission
Former Commissioners
Guillermo ("Gil") Cabrera — Served as Chair of the Ethics Commission from
2007 to 2009. A principal of the Cabrera Firm, Mr. Cabrera is an attorney in private
practice specializing in general business litigation with an emphasis in complex business
litigation, securities litigation, unfair competition, white collar criminal defense, and political
law. Mr. Cabrera was formerly an attorney with the San Diego office of Cooley Godward
Kronish LLP and Luce Forward Hamilton & Scripps LLP. He is a graduate of Boston
College Law School and received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from California
State University, Fullerton. Mr. Cabrera previously served as the Chair of the San Diego
Chief of Police's Use of Force Task Force and is a member of the Chief's Latino Advisory
Committee. He is a Wish Granter, Member, and past Chair of the Board of Directors of the
Make-A-Wish Foundation of San Diego. Mr. Cabrera also serves as a member of the
Board of Directors of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of America. Cabrera is a registered
Democrat. He served on the Ethics Commission from 2005 to 2010.
Former Commissioners
Guillermo ("Gil") Cabrera — Served as Chair of the Ethics Commission from
2007 to 2009. A principal of the Cabrera Firm, Mr. Cabrera is an attorney in private
practice specializing in general business litigation with an emphasis in complex business
litigation, securities litigation, unfair competition, white collar criminal defense, and political
law. Mr. Cabrera was formerly an attorney with the San Diego office of Cooley Godward
Kronish LLP and Luce Forward Hamilton & Scripps LLP. He is a graduate of Boston
College Law School and received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from California
State University, Fullerton. Mr. Cabrera previously served as the Chair of the San Diego
Chief of Police's Use of Force Task Force and is a member of the Chief's Latino Advisory
Committee. He is a Wish Granter, Member, and past Chair of the Board of Directors of the
Make-A-Wish Foundation of San Diego. Mr. Cabrera also serves as a member of the
Board of Directors of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of America. Cabrera is a registered
Democrat. He served on the Ethics Commission from 2005 to 2010.
Central
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Guillermo Cabrera
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East County
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Cabrera
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Case Mana
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Krista M. Cabrera
Central
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Case Mana
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Guillermo Cabrera
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Secret anti-DeMaio campaign revealed
Crime author was hired by influential figures to investigate mayoral candidate
By Craig Gustafson
March 23, 2013
Some of the city’s biggest movers and shakers waged a clandestine campaign last year
during the San Diego mayor’s race to gather and disseminate damaging information on
candidate Carl DeMaio and his longtime partner, an effort that resides in the legal gray
area of campaign disclosure.
The group — financially backed by businessman Fred Maas — spent more than $33,000
to hire a true crime author to dig up dirt on DeMaio, which resulted in a 200-plus page
dossier of court records and other documents that was distributed to nearly every local
media outlet in early 2012 on the condition of anonymity.
photo Fred Maas
Those working on the project behind the scenes included a top aide to then-Mayor Jerry
Sanders and at least three other people with ties to the mayoral campaign of Nathan
Fletcher although Fletcher denies any involvement.
The information dredged up went largely unreported because many in the media
considered it old, irrelevant and an untoward attempt to draw attention to DeMaio’s
homosexuality during the race. The records focused mainly on legal problems involving
his partner — San Diego Gay & Lesbian News Publisher Johnathan Hale.
Opposition research on high-profile candidates is commonplace in politics, but Maas and
his cohorts may have run afoul of state and local campaign laws when they raised money
for the project and failed to disclose its financial backers or spending activity. The group
continued to resist subpoena attempts by local and state investigators for information
throughout the mayor’s race as those involved tried to keep their roles in the project from
being made public by saying it was a journalistic endeavor.
The group, which Maas named “Spotlight San Diego,” relented last week by filing a
financial disclosure to settle a joint investigation by the San Diego Ethics Commission and
the state Fair Political Practices Commission. Those agencies agreed to dismiss the case
without a penalty or violation after the disclosure was filed. The FPPC issued a closure
letter Wednesday to Maas stating that “the information uncovered in the investigation was
not used for political purposes” under state law although the Ethics Commission contends
it was.
Gil Cabrera, who served as outside counsel for the Ethics Commission on the
case, said he remains confident that Spotlight San Diego violated campaign laws, but he
had to weigh the diminishing returns of pursuing a fine in court given the complex nature
of the case.
“From my point of view, once I determined that this was a political purpose that was being
done here, my primary goal was to make sure we got disclosure and that’s what we got,”
he said...
Crime author was hired by influential figures to investigate mayoral candidate
By Craig Gustafson
March 23, 2013
Some of the city’s biggest movers and shakers waged a clandestine campaign last year
during the San Diego mayor’s race to gather and disseminate damaging information on
candidate Carl DeMaio and his longtime partner, an effort that resides in the legal gray
area of campaign disclosure.
The group — financially backed by businessman Fred Maas — spent more than $33,000
to hire a true crime author to dig up dirt on DeMaio, which resulted in a 200-plus page
dossier of court records and other documents that was distributed to nearly every local
media outlet in early 2012 on the condition of anonymity.
photo Fred Maas
Those working on the project behind the scenes included a top aide to then-Mayor Jerry
Sanders and at least three other people with ties to the mayoral campaign of Nathan
Fletcher although Fletcher denies any involvement.
The information dredged up went largely unreported because many in the media
considered it old, irrelevant and an untoward attempt to draw attention to DeMaio’s
homosexuality during the race. The records focused mainly on legal problems involving
his partner — San Diego Gay & Lesbian News Publisher Johnathan Hale.
Opposition research on high-profile candidates is commonplace in politics, but Maas and
his cohorts may have run afoul of state and local campaign laws when they raised money
for the project and failed to disclose its financial backers or spending activity. The group
continued to resist subpoena attempts by local and state investigators for information
throughout the mayor’s race as those involved tried to keep their roles in the project from
being made public by saying it was a journalistic endeavor.
The group, which Maas named “Spotlight San Diego,” relented last week by filing a
financial disclosure to settle a joint investigation by the San Diego Ethics Commission and
the state Fair Political Practices Commission. Those agencies agreed to dismiss the case
without a penalty or violation after the disclosure was filed. The FPPC issued a closure
letter Wednesday to Maas stating that “the information uncovered in the investigation was
not used for political purposes” under state law although the Ethics Commission contends
it was.
Gil Cabrera, who served as outside counsel for the Ethics Commission on the
case, said he remains confident that Spotlight San Diego violated campaign laws, but he
had to weigh the diminishing returns of pursuing a fine in court given the complex nature
of the case.
“From my point of view, once I determined that this was a political purpose that was being
done here, my primary goal was to make sure we got disclosure and that’s what we got,”
he said...
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Jan. 2011 Christina M. Cameron of Stutz law firm was General Counsel to the City of San
Diego’s Ethics Commission
Leslie Devaney
Will U-T and Republicans Attack Leslie Devaney?
Don Bauder, October 11, 2007
The U-T editorial page and local Republican Party have made fools of themselves once again by claiming
that City Attorney Mike Aguirre broke city laws by permitting 6 employees in his office to donate all of $1,640
to his election campaigns. As it turned out, the Ethics Commission has no problem with such a practice, as
long as the money isn't solicited. Campaign law experts agree the law originally cited by the U-T does not
apply to campaigns. Other local politicians, including councilmembers Donna Frye, Jim Madaffer (a
Republican) and Tony Young, received contributions from employees.
Will the U-T and Republicans anathematize that princess of piety, Leslie Devaney, who ran against
Aguirre in 2004?
When she ran, she was manager of the city attorney's office, supervising 340 people. She took $500
from Gael B. Strack, an assistant city attorney. She got another $500 from her boss, Aguirre's
predecessor Casey Gwinn. Ralph Inzunza, then on the council, chipped in $250. Twenty-one other city
employees donated to Devaney's campaign.
Diego’s Ethics Commission
Leslie Devaney
Will U-T and Republicans Attack Leslie Devaney?
Don Bauder, October 11, 2007
The U-T editorial page and local Republican Party have made fools of themselves once again by claiming
that City Attorney Mike Aguirre broke city laws by permitting 6 employees in his office to donate all of $1,640
to his election campaigns. As it turned out, the Ethics Commission has no problem with such a practice, as
long as the money isn't solicited. Campaign law experts agree the law originally cited by the U-T does not
apply to campaigns. Other local politicians, including councilmembers Donna Frye, Jim Madaffer (a
Republican) and Tony Young, received contributions from employees.
Will the U-T and Republicans anathematize that princess of piety, Leslie Devaney, who ran against
Aguirre in 2004?
When she ran, she was manager of the city attorney's office, supervising 340 people. She took $500
from Gael B. Strack, an assistant city attorney. She got another $500 from her boss, Aguirre's
predecessor Casey Gwinn. Ralph Inzunza, then on the council, chipped in $250. Twenty-one other city
employees donated to Devaney's campaign.
Stutz Law Firm Selected General Counsel to City of San Diego Ethics
Commission
Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz APC is pleased to announce it has been selected to provide
General Counsel services to the City of San Diego Ethics Commission. Beginning January 1,
2011, Associate Christina Cameron will serve as General Counsel and Partners Leslie E.
Devaney and Prescilla Dugard will serve as Associate General Counsel.
Commission
Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz APC is pleased to announce it has been selected to provide
General Counsel services to the City of San Diego Ethics Commission. Beginning January 1,
2011, Associate Christina Cameron will serve as General Counsel and Partners Leslie E.
Devaney and Prescilla Dugard will serve as Associate General Counsel.
Lawyers for ethics
commission also provide
legal service to a
redevelopment agency that
has been investigated
The ethics of the
Ethics Commission
By Dave Maass
City Beat
Oct 12, 2011
At a September meeting of
the San Diego Ethics
Commission, the agency’s
executive director, Stacey
Fulhorst, presented the
mother of all catch-22s.
While inspecting lobbyist-
activity records, CityBeat had
learned that private
attorneys retained by the
Ethics Commission are
also working as counsel
for the southeastern
Economic Development
Corporation (SEDC), a city
redevelopment agency,
and as lobbyists for
private companies. The
relationships seem to present
a potential conflict of interest
on multiple levels, since the
commission both regulates
lobbyists and enforces ethics
in city government, including
SEDC. Asked about this,
Fulhorst said the law firm—
Stutz, Artiano, Shinoff and
Holtz—and the
commission have put
several firewalls in place.
However, since attorney-
client confidentiality
covers legal agreements,
Fulhorst couldn’t offer
proof of these safeguards
without first asking the
commission’s seven
members to release the
information.
“I would personally
recommend that you do
approve a waiver, a very
limited waiver of just,
literally, a handful of
paragraphs, because I do
think it’s important to
demonstrate to the public
that we recognize it would
not be appropriate for us to
receive legal services from
the same law firm that was
providing general counsel to
SEDC on SEDC matters,”
Fulhorst told commissioners
on Sept. 23.
Paradoxically, Fulhorst
couldn’t show the
commissioners the relevant
paragraphs because they’d
then become public record.
Nor could the commission
turn to its legal counsel for
advice, since the lawyers
were the subject of the
discussion.
The commission deliberated
for 15 minutes on whether
an agency that investigates
conflicts of interests should
be transparent regarding its
own potential conflicts.
Some members wondered
why CityBeat wouldn’t just
take Fulhorst’s word.
“You have an excellent
reputation in the community;
you are an extremely careful
person, and I don’t see why
your answer should not be
sufficient,” Commissioner
and retired Judge William
Howatt Jr. told Fulhorst.
Some worried about setting
a precedent.
“I just think we should be
careful with granting such a
waiver,” Commissioner Larry
Westfall, an accountant,
said. “Once you do it, we
start to open the door for
every little, two-bit
newspaper in town to come
here and make requests for
information, too.”
Some recognized the public
interest in releasing the
document, but
Commissioner and attorney
John O’Neill alone saw that
as overriding other concerns.
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Development Corporation
“I think it puts to rest any
suspicion there is any
impropriety here,” O’Neill
said. “I don’t think it helps us
to not give the document.”
The commission voted 5-1
(one member was absent)
against releasing the
information, rejecting
Fulhorst’s offer to conduct
more research on an issue
that wouldn’t have come up
a year ago.
With Proposition E in 2004,
San Diego voters authorized
the Ethics Commission to
hire its own legal counsel
instead of relying on the
advice of the City attorney’s
office. Proponents argued it
was problematic for the city
attorney to represent both
the commission and the city
officials subject to
commission investigations.
They also noted that City
attorney staff are also
subject to commission
enforcement actions.
For the first five years, the
commission employed a staff
attorney, but when the
lawyer departed last year,
the agency decided to
contract with an outside firm
to allow more flexibility. The
Stutz firm submitted a bid
and, Fulhorst said, was
selected because of the
“unique expertise and
knowledge” of Christina
Cameron, a longtime City
Hall staffer specializing in
ethics and campaign reform
who’d recently earned a law
degree. Under the terms of
the bid, Cameron would
serve as a general counsel,
working under the
supervision of “associate
general counsel” Prescilla
Dugard and Leslie Devaney.
All three were serving as
counsel to SEDC and
lobbyists, but the firm
agreed that Cameron would
be severed from SEDC
matters and no longer
register as a lobbyist.
In the first half of 2011, the
Ethics Commission paid the
Stutz firm $48,000 in fees,
and another $3,000 to a
second firm that handles
cases when a conflict arises.
During the same period, the
Stutz firm collected at least
$203,000 from SEDC. As a
lobbying organization, the
firm represents EverFlow
Resources, Staff Pro and
western Towing.
Fulhorst, Cameron and
Devaney described to
CityBeat many of the
physical and procedural
measures in place to protect
against a conflict. The firm
also amended its lobbyist
reports following CityBeat’s
inquiry to better reflect
Devaney and Dugard’s
involvement with the Ethics
Commission: Each provided
less than an hour of legal
services in the first half of
the year.
Tracy Westen, CEO of the
Center for governmental
Studies, a Los Angeles-
based watchdog
organization, says he’s less
concerned with the specific
SEDC issue than he is
alarmed to learn that
registered lobbyists are
providing legal advice to
lobbyist regulators.
“Ideally, if you contract for
ethics advice with outside
counsel, you want that
outside counsel to give you
independent advice,”
Westen says. “But if the
outside counsel is also
lobbying the city, its advice
may tilt in favor of lobbyists
in general. Simply recusing
themselves from judgments
involving a client they’re
lobbying for is a good idea,
but it does not purge them
of pro-lobbyist sentiments.”
Of the 106 complaints
processed by the
commission in 2010, 38
percent—the largest
portion—were alleged
violations of the city’s
lobbying ordinance,
according to the commission’
s annual report.
“If a matter were heavily
related to lobbying and I felt
it was inappropriate to talk to
[Devaney or Dugard]
because they are registered
lobbyists, then I have other
partners and other senior
attorneys that I can work
with if I need to,” Cameron
says.
Westen says that’s not
enough. “It’s very difficult for
a law firm to purge itself of
this appearance of a conflict
if some partners are
lobbying and others are
not,” Westen says. “I think
the city really needs to go to
a law firm that is not doing
lobbying.”
Fulhorst says that’s an
impractical idea coming from
someone “working in
academia,” since the “vast
majority of law firms” in San
Diego are registered as
lobbyists under the city
ordinance.
Attorney Gil Cabrera said a
dedicated staff attorney
would be the “cleanest
approach,” which was the
case when he served on the
commission from 2005 and
2010. However, the former
commission chair says, most
law firms successfully
maneuver these potential
conflicts on a regular basis.
“It’s a matter of disclosure
and making sure that
everyone knows and is
aware of the issues and the
client is comfortable with
that,” Cabrera said.
With transparency in mind,
Cabrera also said he’d have
voted to release the contract.
Correction: The print version
of this story erroneously
indicated that the Stutz,
Artiano, Shinoff and Holtz
firm are registered lobbyists
for the southeastern
Economic Development
Corporation. The firm
represents the SEDC as
general counsel, but not as
lobbyists. As registered
lobbyists, the firm's lawyers
Leslie Devaney and
Prescilla Dugard represent
EverFlow Resources, Staff
Pro and western Towing.
commission also provide
legal service to a
redevelopment agency that
has been investigated
The ethics of the
Ethics Commission
By Dave Maass
City Beat
Oct 12, 2011
At a September meeting of
the San Diego Ethics
Commission, the agency’s
executive director, Stacey
Fulhorst, presented the
mother of all catch-22s.
While inspecting lobbyist-
activity records, CityBeat had
learned that private
attorneys retained by the
Ethics Commission are
also working as counsel
for the southeastern
Economic Development
Corporation (SEDC), a city
redevelopment agency,
and as lobbyists for
private companies. The
relationships seem to present
a potential conflict of interest
on multiple levels, since the
commission both regulates
lobbyists and enforces ethics
in city government, including
SEDC. Asked about this,
Fulhorst said the law firm—
Stutz, Artiano, Shinoff and
Holtz—and the
commission have put
several firewalls in place.
However, since attorney-
client confidentiality
covers legal agreements,
Fulhorst couldn’t offer
proof of these safeguards
without first asking the
commission’s seven
members to release the
information.
“I would personally
recommend that you do
approve a waiver, a very
limited waiver of just,
literally, a handful of
paragraphs, because I do
think it’s important to
demonstrate to the public
that we recognize it would
not be appropriate for us to
receive legal services from
the same law firm that was
providing general counsel to
SEDC on SEDC matters,”
Fulhorst told commissioners
on Sept. 23.
Paradoxically, Fulhorst
couldn’t show the
commissioners the relevant
paragraphs because they’d
then become public record.
Nor could the commission
turn to its legal counsel for
advice, since the lawyers
were the subject of the
discussion.
The commission deliberated
for 15 minutes on whether
an agency that investigates
conflicts of interests should
be transparent regarding its
own potential conflicts.
Some members wondered
why CityBeat wouldn’t just
take Fulhorst’s word.
“You have an excellent
reputation in the community;
you are an extremely careful
person, and I don’t see why
your answer should not be
sufficient,” Commissioner
and retired Judge William
Howatt Jr. told Fulhorst.
Some worried about setting
a precedent.
“I just think we should be
careful with granting such a
waiver,” Commissioner Larry
Westfall, an accountant,
said. “Once you do it, we
start to open the door for
every little, two-bit
newspaper in town to come
here and make requests for
information, too.”
Some recognized the public
interest in releasing the
document, but
Commissioner and attorney
John O’Neill alone saw that
as overriding other concerns.
Related content
Changing of the guardInstant
democracyRaspberry pie
Related to:Ethics
CommissionSoutheastern Economic
Development Corporation
“I think it puts to rest any
suspicion there is any
impropriety here,” O’Neill
said. “I don’t think it helps us
to not give the document.”
The commission voted 5-1
(one member was absent)
against releasing the
information, rejecting
Fulhorst’s offer to conduct
more research on an issue
that wouldn’t have come up
a year ago.
With Proposition E in 2004,
San Diego voters authorized
the Ethics Commission to
hire its own legal counsel
instead of relying on the
advice of the City attorney’s
office. Proponents argued it
was problematic for the city
attorney to represent both
the commission and the city
officials subject to
commission investigations.
They also noted that City
attorney staff are also
subject to commission
enforcement actions.
For the first five years, the
commission employed a staff
attorney, but when the
lawyer departed last year,
the agency decided to
contract with an outside firm
to allow more flexibility. The
Stutz firm submitted a bid
and, Fulhorst said, was
selected because of the
“unique expertise and
knowledge” of Christina
Cameron, a longtime City
Hall staffer specializing in
ethics and campaign reform
who’d recently earned a law
degree. Under the terms of
the bid, Cameron would
serve as a general counsel,
working under the
supervision of “associate
general counsel” Prescilla
Dugard and Leslie Devaney.
All three were serving as
counsel to SEDC and
lobbyists, but the firm
agreed that Cameron would
be severed from SEDC
matters and no longer
register as a lobbyist.
In the first half of 2011, the
Ethics Commission paid the
Stutz firm $48,000 in fees,
and another $3,000 to a
second firm that handles
cases when a conflict arises.
During the same period, the
Stutz firm collected at least
$203,000 from SEDC. As a
lobbying organization, the
firm represents EverFlow
Resources, Staff Pro and
western Towing.
Fulhorst, Cameron and
Devaney described to
CityBeat many of the
physical and procedural
measures in place to protect
against a conflict. The firm
also amended its lobbyist
reports following CityBeat’s
inquiry to better reflect
Devaney and Dugard’s
involvement with the Ethics
Commission: Each provided
less than an hour of legal
services in the first half of
the year.
Tracy Westen, CEO of the
Center for governmental
Studies, a Los Angeles-
based watchdog
organization, says he’s less
concerned with the specific
SEDC issue than he is
alarmed to learn that
registered lobbyists are
providing legal advice to
lobbyist regulators.
“Ideally, if you contract for
ethics advice with outside
counsel, you want that
outside counsel to give you
independent advice,”
Westen says. “But if the
outside counsel is also
lobbying the city, its advice
may tilt in favor of lobbyists
in general. Simply recusing
themselves from judgments
involving a client they’re
lobbying for is a good idea,
but it does not purge them
of pro-lobbyist sentiments.”
Of the 106 complaints
processed by the
commission in 2010, 38
percent—the largest
portion—were alleged
violations of the city’s
lobbying ordinance,
according to the commission’
s annual report.
“If a matter were heavily
related to lobbying and I felt
it was inappropriate to talk to
[Devaney or Dugard]
because they are registered
lobbyists, then I have other
partners and other senior
attorneys that I can work
with if I need to,” Cameron
says.
Westen says that’s not
enough. “It’s very difficult for
a law firm to purge itself of
this appearance of a conflict
if some partners are
lobbying and others are
not,” Westen says. “I think
the city really needs to go to
a law firm that is not doing
lobbying.”
Fulhorst says that’s an
impractical idea coming from
someone “working in
academia,” since the “vast
majority of law firms” in San
Diego are registered as
lobbyists under the city
ordinance.
Attorney Gil Cabrera said a
dedicated staff attorney
would be the “cleanest
approach,” which was the
case when he served on the
commission from 2005 and
2010. However, the former
commission chair says, most
law firms successfully
maneuver these potential
conflicts on a regular basis.
“It’s a matter of disclosure
and making sure that
everyone knows and is
aware of the issues and the
client is comfortable with
that,” Cabrera said.
With transparency in mind,
Cabrera also said he’d have
voted to release the contract.
Correction: The print version
of this story erroneously
indicated that the Stutz,
Artiano, Shinoff and Holtz
firm are registered lobbyists
for the southeastern
Economic Development
Corporation. The firm
represents the SEDC as
general counsel, but not as
lobbyists. As registered
lobbyists, the firm's lawyers
Leslie Devaney and
Prescilla Dugard represent
EverFlow Resources, Staff
Pro and western Towing.