Chiarelli allegations: What happens now?
Kate Porter | CBC News | Posted: September 27, 2019 8:00 AM | Last Updated: September 27, 2019
With integrity investigation underway, city clerk already reviewing hiring practices
The mayor of Ottawa said he's "disgusted" by new allegations against Coun. Rick Chiarelli. A trio of councillors has called for his resignation.
So now what happens?
A CBC News investigation has found more than a half dozen women who allege the long-time councillor asked them inappropriate questions in job interviews, took them to strip clubs and told them what they should wear.
- 'Better without a bra': More women come forward with allegations against Chiarelli
- Councillor asked job applicant about going braless, woman alleges
In a letter to CBC, Chiarelli's lawyer said the councillor "adamantly denies the allegations" made by the women and will answer when his health permits.
For now, Chiarelli is not officially on leave and is still being paid his $105,000 salary, while councillors Scott Moffatt and Allan Hubley have been assigned to look after College ward residents.
Can Chiarelli be kicked off city council?
In a word, no.
"Unfortunately we have no mechanism at the city, under provincial law, to dismiss a member of council," Watson said Thursday.
Councillors Jeff Leiper, Catherine McKenney and Shawn Menard may be calling on Chiarelli to resign "if he knows these accounts are accurate," but that decision is Chiarelli's to make.
And he says they aren't.
Ontario's Municipal Act does, however, state that if a city councillor misses meetings for "three successive months" without council's formal permission, their seat becomes vacant.
That is why council's unprecedented move Wednesday to postpone granting Chiarelli a leave of absence is so important. It keeps that clock ticking.
Chiarelli has not attended a committee or council meeting for weeks, but if he were to show up for even one meeting, the three-month countdown would start again.
Should he resign, or should his seat become vacant in the coming months, a byelection would have to be called since there are still three years left before the next election in 2022.
What can the integrity commissioner do?
Councillors and the mayor have said repeatedly they want to hear the results of an investigation by independent integrity commissioner Robert Marleau before they pass judgment on their colleague.
Marleau can deal with issues informally and also investigate formal complaints. He would be the one who determines if Chiarelli has contravened the city's code of conduct for members of council, which states they must treat people "with respect and without abuse, bullying or intimidation" and "ensure that their work environment is free from discrimination and harassment."
The mayor said Thursday if the new women coming forward also file formal complaints, Marleau's investigation may take longer. The wait is frustrating, Watson said, because he wants to see a resolution soon.
But he also encouraged the women to take their complaints to the integrity commissioner.
If Marleau finds Chiarelli breached the code, provincial laws offer just two penalties for city council to apply:
- A reprimand, as Coun. George Darouze received this week.
- A suspension of Chiarelli's pay for up to 90 days.
The integrity commissioner can also recommend council direct Chiarelli to offer a public apology, as well as remove him from committees.
"We will take the most appropriate action we can," said the mayor.
Why aren't penalties more severe?
According to Stéphane Emard-Chabot, it's because those provincial laws are a bit behind the times.
Financial conflicts of interest have always come with strict penalties, but rules for disciplining a councillor for improper behaviour came about more recently, explained Emard-Chabot, a lawyer at the University of Ottawa and a former city councillor.
Ottawa's integrity commissioner took office in 2013 and the role was only made mandatory for all Ontario municipalities this year.
"I think for the longest time political behaviour was sort of left up to the honour of the person holding office," he said.
That lack of oversight meant a lot of questionable behaviour was tolerated in the past, said Emard-Chabot.
"The statute hasn't kept up with the times and probably should be revisited as far as penalties go," he suggested, pointing to the case of the former mayor of Carleton Place who was stripped of pay for multiple breaches yet kept his job.
But harsher penalties, such as ousting a politician, should never be left to a court of public opinion or his or her political peers, Emard-Chabot cautioned.
That power, he said, should only be put in the hands of the justice system.
What needs to change for political staffers?
Unlike most city employees, councillors' assistants are hired by the politicians and paid through their office budgets. Council staffers are not covered by a collective agreement, and lack the job security of many others at the city.
Menard, for one, has suggested they should be unionized and given more rights.
That's something the mayor, too, is now mulling. After the most recent allegations surfaced, he asked for an "action plan" that includes looking at how to "strengthen the rights" of those staffers.
On Thursday, city clerk Rick O'Connor announced he would be reviewing the recruitment and hiring process for councillors' assistants.
That could lead to new rules such as having a human resources employee at every interview and requiring those interviews be held at city buildings.
Chiarelli frequently interviewed job applicants at a Starbucks.
O'Connor also told employees they can call their employee assistance program and a 24-hour crisis line.