Author: David Curlee

Posted onBehind Closed Doors

OCFA’s Bait and Deceive

by 29 Comments on OCFA’s Bait and Deceive

Several months back, the Fullerton Firefighters’ Association stormed City Hall and demanded the City Council solicit proposals from the Orange County Fire Authority. Perpetually greedy and feeling entitled to more and more, the union knows OCFA has deeper pockets than Fullerton will ever have.

Details of that proposal are now available:

OCFA_Fullerton

https://www.fullertonsfuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/OCFA_Fullerton.pdf

True to form, OCFA wasted no time in being the slimy car salesman promising more for less. In the smallest typeface they could possibly use, they say it “Excludes one-time startup costs and City’s Annual UAAL Payment to PERS.”

This means the nearly $5.8 million in “savings” to Fullerton is not real. Fullerton will remain on the hook for millions of dollars in unfunded UAAL pension liability each and every year AFTER the firefighters have left and joined OCFA.

So what did they promise Fullerton?

The conversion of Truck 6 to a paramedic truck, and the conversion of Engine 3 to a Paramedic Truck 3. The latter is somewhat comical because Fullerton doesn’t have a Truck that will fit inside Station 3. Fullerton already tried putting their lone Truck at Station 3 and had to store it outdoors. Whether OCFA would bring in a smaller Truck or force Fullerton to remodel Station 3 is unknown.

These things don’t really matter because OCFA has likely underestimated the true cost to the tune of seven figures. The sad and scary part is the likes of Silva and Zahra on the City Council will probably fall for this proposal hook, line and sinker.

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Posted onTransparency

Adam Loeser, Dishonest Fire Chief

by 33 Comments on Adam Loeser, Dishonest Fire Chief
Loeser

The last time I wrote on this topic, I pointed out that Fullerton/Brea Fire Chief Adam Loeser is a union puppet, using his authority as fire chief to advocate for the interests of the IAFF fire union.

What I didn’t tell you at the time is he flat out lied in his agenda letter to the City Council. The real reason, the more pressing reason, for seeking cancellation of the automatic aid agreement with the City of Placentia is to settle a dispute the union clowns filed with the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB). In the first agenda letter, he said the City Council should cancel because, “The current Automatic Aid Agreement between Fullerton and Placentia and its corresponding Memorandum of Understanding outline specific deliverables and capabilities. The City of Placentia has not sufficiently met many of these deliverables and capabilities to the satisfaction of the City of Fullerton Fire Department.”

Nowhere in there did he mention the pending litigation before the PERB that forces the City Council to vote on this matter to determine if the matter will proceed to a PERB hearing or not. If the City Council does what Loeser and the fire union want, the union has agreed to drop the matter before the PERB.

An honest public servant would have included this vital information in the initial agenda letter. I’m even told members of the City Council had no idea the PERB dispute existed until a couple weeks ago, even though it was first filed over a year ago.

Don’t take my word for it, compare his agenda letters. The first is the September 21, 2021 letter and the second is the October 5, 2021. (Note: the matter was continued from the September meeting, so this concerns the exact same issue)

October 5, 2021 version:

To add insult to injury, Adam Loeser put this item on the Consent Calendar where it can be rammed through without discussion – unless the public, or a member of the City Council, requests it to be “pulled” for discussion. The Consent Calendar is used for routine matters that don’t warrant discussion, such as approving the minutes from the prior meeting. This is not a routine matter, automatic/mutual aid agreements are amended or cancelled like this maybe once every 30 or 40 years.

Loeser, in his usual arrogant form, first lies to the public. The second time around — after he was told to fix the agenda letter, by you know, telling the truth — put it on the consent calendar in hopes he won’t have to explain himself.

These types of self-serving public servants are the worst of the worst.

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Posted onBad Cops

Fullerton’s Newest DUI Cop Formally Charged

by 23 Comments on Fullerton’s Newest DUI Cop Formally Charged
Anthony Valle on the left

Several weeks back, we shared that a Fullerton Police officer was arrested in La Habra for driving under the influence.

The charging document is now available. Prosecutors allege his blood alcohol content was 0.15% – almost double the legal limit.

Read the document for yourself:

wp-1633012961625

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Posted onChronic Failure

Fire Union Puppet Adam Loeser

by 26 Comments on Fire Union Puppet Adam Loeser

On Tuesday night, the Fullerton Fire Department will be asking the City Council to void an automatic aid agreement with the City of Placentia. In simple terms, automatic aid is supposed to help both Fullerton and Placentia by allowing units to respond into the other city automatically when Advanced Life Support (ALS) or a multiple unit response is needed.

092121-FD-Automatic-Aid-Agreement-Agenda-Report

When Placentia was still served by OCFA, the fire union had no problem whatsoever with automatic aid. Once Placentia decided to create their own department using private paramedics, the union threw a fit and continues to do so. Members of the Fullerton Firefighters’ Association and their families have bullied the City Council on numerous occasions.

Former City Manager Ken Domer supported the automatic aid agreement. Once he was fired, the union saw an opportunity to scrap the agreement but needed someone to champion their cause, a full on union puppet. They found their man — Adam Loeser — Fire Chief of the Fullerton and Brea Fire Departments.

Meet the Chiefs | Brea, CA - Official Website
Adam Loeser

The arrogance of Adam Loeser is almost unprecedented even in government circles. He’s asking the City Council to cancel the agreement but lists no specifics as to why. Nothing. Not even a clue. Just a blanket statement backed up by no details. The City Council will apparently have to beg him for details.

To make this even more shady, Adam Loeser scheduled “Fire Personnel Distinguished Service Awards” for the very same meeting. This ensures that lots of fire department employees (and their families) will already be present at the meeting so they can bully and intimidate the City Council when the Placentia agreement comes up later — exactly what the fire union wants.

Tuesday night will be packed with self-righteous vitriol by the Fullerton Fire clowns claiming (again) that Placentia is an inferior department, that public safety is at risk, etc, etc. Let’s hope three of our five City Council members can see through their nonsense and vote no.

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Posted onBad Cops

Confirmed: Fullerton PD Officer Arrested for DUI

by 57 Comments on Confirmed: Fullerton PD Officer Arrested for DUI
Anthony Valle

In case you missed the earlier post, Anthony Valle of the Fullerton Police Department was indeed arrested by the La Habra Police Department for Vehicle Code 23152(a) – better known as DUI.

You can add his name to the long list of current and former Fullerton Police officers charged with some sort of misdemeanor or felony. How embarrassing.

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Posted onChronic Failure

Jones “Public Nuisance” Mayer

by 20 Comments on Jones “Public Nuisance” Mayer

If you thought having a City Attorney’s office suing bloggers to cover up their incompetence was bad and unethical, you’ll love this:

Fullerton’s joke of a law firm Jones & Mayer has left their front steps in a state of decrepit disrepair for at least 6 months.  Their office is located at 3777 N. Harbor Blvd, alongside a busy sidewalk.  Imagine taking your young child for a walk, losing sight for a quick second, and then watching them crack their head open on that rusty steel mess, protected only by a 2×4?

Or how about working here under the assumption that that temporary railing is well-secured?  Look closely, it isn’t.

Let’s see what constitutes a “public nuisance” within the City of Fullerton:

Who would have thought the City Attorney is the poster child of how best to violate 6.01.030 (A) and (B) many times over?

I hope the irony of this is not lost on you.  This is a law firm who makes their living advising cities on “public nuisance” cases all over California, presiding over administrative hearings, and in some cases prosecuting land owners who refuse to make repairs for the very same type of neglect and disrepair pictured above.

Time and time again, the arrogance of City Attorney Dick Jones is just stunning.  He interprets or disregards the law in whichever way is most convenient for his interests.  In case you’ve forgotten, now would be a good time to review Dick Jones’ attempt to steal a pension from CalPERS by faking himself as a City of Westminster employee.  He knew better then, and he knows better now but just doesn’t care, and that’s the problem.

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Posted onBehind Closed Doors

My story as a FFFF defendant

by 18 Comments on My story as a FFFF defendant

Most readers of this blog are well aware of the recent settlement between the City of Fullerton, FFFF, Joshua Ferguson, and myself.

Joshua did a great job explaining various aspects of our lawsuit in a video, and why we settled. I encourage you to watch if you haven’t already. Until now, I’ve been pretty quiet about this lawsuit and haven’t said much. In an effort to clear our names, I’d like to dispute some of the City’s claims and share new information you might find interesting.

This is what the City’s Dropbox account looked like.

Typing www.cityoffullerton.com/outbox into a web browser redirected anybody to this open and unsecured Dropbox account. The City went out of their way to disable security controls to make it possible for all users to see all files.

Notice some of the files have our last names, Curlee and Ferguson, in the file name itself. Who wouldn’t download a file named for you?

(more…)

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Posted onChronic Failure

Silva’s Escort

by 29 Comments on Silva’s Escort

Readers of this blog might think I have a hyper-obsession with toll road violations.  Not really.  It’s just that toll road violations seem to bring out the very worst and embarrassing moments in government.  Nine times out of ten, the car shouldn’t have been using the toll roads to begin with.  Such is the case here, once again.

“Rebecca Leifkes escorted Council Member Jesus Silva to various Homeless Shelters in Orange County.”

Why does Silva need an escort to visit homeless shelters?  He owns his own car, and is presumably competent enough to drive the freeways.  Council members are not entitled to mileage reimbursement, toll road reimbursements, nor do they have assigned staff persons to cater to their every need.

If the hand-written notation is as true as written (below), this speaks volumes about Jesus Silva’s ability to conduct City business on his own, without help from staff.  The hand-holding and coddling needs to stop.

 

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Posted onSetting The Bar Low

Stuffed Animals

by 8 Comments on Stuffed Animals

Two years ago, I wrote a post for this blog entitled, Woe to the Charitable Donor where I pointed out the embarrassingly poor oversight when it comes to receiving and spending donated money.  Literally nothing has changed in the time since then.

Last year, the City purchased 75 K9 Hero stuffed animals — like the one pictured above — for the tidy sum of $618.75.

Follow along below.  On the reconciliation report, that purchase is charged to the 95-2501 account.  95 is a Trust Fund, and 2501 is where K-9 donations from the community are deposited.

 

Again, we have an instance where well-meaning Fullerton non-profits think they’re helping to fund actual police work, actual K-9 food and equipment, actual K-9 veterinary care — when that isn’t the case at all.

A mere four days before those stuffed animals were ordered, actual K-9 veterinary expenses at Yorba Regional Animal Hospital were charged to the General Fund, account 10277-6319.  (Note: anything 10xxx is the General Fund)

Without missing a beat, two days later, they spent $700 at Work Dogs International, again using General Fund account 10277-6319.

Why did they charge the General Fund when just days before/after, they had donated K-9 money to burn on stupid stuffed animals?

My detractors will say, so what, it’s a small sum of money, who cares?  Tell that to the City employees whose jobs in the Public Works / Landscape Division are about to be eliminated.  The City just issued an RFP for Park Maintenance because the City can no longer afford their wages and pensions.  Maybe if the incompetence and sense of entitlement at the police department weren’t so bad, we would have cash to spend elsewhere.

Does the City have any policy whatsoever for proper handling of donations?  Why is this tolerated?

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