Politics & Government

Sex Assault Scandal Puts County CEO's Job in Jeopardy

The Board of Supervisors Thursday will discuss the performance of the county's chief executive officer for his handling of several sex assault allegations within the county's public works department.

Orange County supervisors again will meet behind closed doors Thursday to discuss the job performance of their chief executive officer in the wake of the fallout from the arrest of Santa Ana Councilman Carlos Bustamante, who is charged with sexually assaulting seven women employees when he was a county executive.

The board's agenda includes items such as ``public employee discipline, dismissal release,'' as well as appointment of an interim county executive officer.

Orange County Board Chairman John Moorlach confirmed the meeting will consider how CEO Tom Mauk handled the Bustamante allegations. but declined to comment further.

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``It's the continuation of a discussion,'' that began when the board called a special meeting for July 6, he said.

The meeting also follows the release Friday of an independent review of the county's public works department that revealed it was wracked with low morale, micromanagement, ``a culture of favortism,'' poor communication and conflicts with the Board of Supervisors.

Find out what's happening in Los Alamitos-Seal Beachwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The board also discussed Mauk's job performance at its Tuesday meeting.

Bustamante, meanwhile, is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary
hearing Thursday.

Bustamante was arrested nine months after resigning as executive manager of the county Public Works Department amid allegations of sexual misconduct involving co-workers.

The county's internal auditor gave supervisors a report March 2 about coworkers' allegations against Bustamante. That report was forwarded to District Attorney Tony Rackauckas March 14, Moorlach said.

The alleged assaults happened between 2003 and last year while Bustamante worked in the Orange County Public Works Department, according to Rackauckas.

Bustamante is charged with six counts of false imprisonment, three counts of assault with the intent to commit a sexual offense and one count each of stalking, attempted sexual battery by restraint and grand theft by false pretense, according to the Orange County District Attorney's Office.

The grand theft charge stems from expense reports he submitted after attending a 2 1/2-week program in Boston.

Bustamante also faces one misdemeanor count each of battery, assault, sexual battery and attempted sexual battery. The charges include sentence-enhancing allegations of committing the offenses as a result of sexual compulsion and for the purpose of sexual gratification.

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK IN THE COMMENTS

Should the county CEO take the fall for the sex assault scandal that happened under his watch?

- City News Service


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