OwenABlair, Esq.
A candidate for reason.
I believe in the rule of law, logic and rational policy. I’ve been an attorney in this state for a while (and a DOJ employee) and that means you can trust my judgement and knowledge when it comes to making laws. I represent a large variety of clients, from those charged with serious crimes all the way to police officers. I’ve seen first hand the way that laws effect people, in action. I plan to be proactive, and fix problems with legislation before it effects the citizens of Redwood.
Plans: I propose the following common sense plans:
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Public Safety: RPD has been struggling to perform for some time now. It needs to end. I will create a fair and collaborative solution that works for the citizens of Redwood and the police officers that serve the community to increase accountability, professionalism and ensure that citizens are treated fairly. I would like to implement regular review of RPD policy and procedure. I also plan to propose legislation requiring increased community outreach in order to engage people with the department.
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City Charter: The city charter is full of issues and needs several amendments. First of all, the investigatory process is under the near exclusive control of the mayor, to the point where the mayor can dismiss any investigation that is not against himself, which is open to abuse and favoritism. As it stands, the mayor and city attorney are the only people who can initiate an investigation. The mayor could also dismiss the city attorney in order to halt or delay an investigation. The mayor is also able to decide if an investigation report will be published, which is contrary to transparency. Once an investigation is over, the report should be published, unless in cases of forwarding to state government officials for prosecution, and even then only delayed. Other issues are present with the investigations process, and I intend to revise this process to allow the council to vote to have the city attorney investigate a matter, and to add additional checks and balances on the mayor’s power to control investigations. From a legal standpoint, major changes involving more than one section require the assistance of the County Council as well as support from the body I am running for, but is still well within the realm of possibilities. More changes need made from a legal standpoint as well, and I plan to conduct a further detailed analysis of the charter to prevent abuse of power and increase clarity.
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City Office Bars: Barring someone from office is perhaps the most extreme power the city can take and judicial review of these bars should be in place to prevent abuse. I would like to amend the charter to allow the courts to review a city bar and to require the city attorney review and investigate all bar proposals to ensure that clear and convincing evidence is present before voting can begin to prevent abuse.
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City events: The city hosts very few large scale events. I would like to change that, by encouraging the state to host some of the larger events we see and by hosting our own large events to get more people into town. Redwood has a reputation for criminal activity and I think it is important that we try to change that.
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Detailed legislative review: I plan to review legislature in the same way I review a case, diligently and with great care. You have my word that I will never vote favorably on any ordinance the has legal or constitutional problems.
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Cooperation with state government agencies: I would like to increase the amount of joint activities involved with both the city and the state, including but not limited to: policing and public works.
I humbly ask you to support me in this election, so we can enact common sense measures and prevent abuse of power. Those who oppose me seek to hold onto power and protect their own interests.