San Clemente Councilwoman Kathy Ward abruptly leaves dais preventing a vote on city’s next contract with Sheriff’s Department

When San Clemente Councilwoman Kathy Ward abruptly left the dais Tuesday night, June 18, she left the council without a quorum to vote on the city’s contract with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department to provide policing services beyond July 1.

Council members had discussed the $16.3 million contract at a previous meeting on the city’s budget, even agreeing to fund two more deputies and a crime prevention specialist. But, when Councilwoman Laura Ferguson made a motion a little after 9 p.m. Tuesday to approve the finalized contract to fund services through June 30, 2020, she tacked on instructions to City Manager James Makshanoff to cut 5 percent from other places in the city’s budget as a way to reduce city expenses going forward.

That’s when Ward grabbed her belongings and left.

Councilman Chris Hamm had also just left about 10 minutes earlier to go to his job as a firefighter with the Orange County Fire Authority.

“We don’t have a quorum now, so I don’t think we can act on this,” said Mayor Pro Tem Dan Bane after Ward left.

On Wednesday, Sheriff Don Barnes sent a letter to Makshanoff saying: “I’m obligated to inform you that the sheriff is under no legal obligation to continue providing law enforcement services outside of a contract.”

“While the contract allows for a one-time extension, as of today, without a contract, the city of San Clemente will not have police services provided by the sheriff effective July 1, 2019,” Barnes wrote in his letter dated Wednesday, June 19.

Barnes added that the Sheriff’s Department has served the city for 26 years, and has often had to put its officers in harm’s way by doing “more with less.” He urged the city to reconvene before the contract expires and stressed the importance of adding the additional deputies as the city’s staff has recommended.

Assistant City Manager Erik Sund said on Wednesday a provision in the city’s contract with the Sheriff’s Department provides a 60-day temporary agreement in which the contract could still be finalized.

Ward could not be reached Wednesday for comment.

Interrupting Ferguson as she made the motion to approve the contract with the instructions to cut elsewhere, Ward said: “We already talked about this. We looked at a budget we were going to approve and it just came back to us tonight. If it’s going to be changed, we want a full council.”

Ferguson told Ward that she agreed the budget had already been approved, but her motion was a direction for the city manager.

“I’m not going to participate,” Ward said, getting out of her seat and grabbing her belongings. “Is this what you want?”

Sund said city staffers are waiting to “see what the mayor pro tem wants to do. We’re dark until Aug. 21. If we didn’t have a special meeting, we could come back and finalize it then.”

Resident Gene James, who ran for City Council last November and has been vigilant in asking for more law enforcement, was among about 25 people waiting to speak to the council in public comments.

He described Ward’s behavior as “very weird and unexpected.”

“I don’t think anyone saw it coming,” he said. “Just when we need more deputies, we’re faced with the issue of having none.”

James said he planned to address the council about his concerns over the city’s maintenance yard where homeless people are being allowed to legally camp after they were moved last month from public property in North Beach.

“There are up to 35 tents there now,” he said. “There seems to be no control and only one security guard. What would happen if there are no deputies? Where would they come from?”

“The (sheriff’s) contract needs to be approved immediately and it has the full support of OCSD leadership,” he said. “It is unconscionable council members are not present to vote on it.”