Overview
- The nine-member council approved the no-confidence resolution on Tuesday by a 5-1 vote with three councilors recorded as present, a move that signals official disapproval but cannot remove the mayor from office.
- Mayor Brian DePeña has pleaded not guilty in both cases and says he will not resign, and he was released on personal recognizance after earlier federal arrest in August.
- State charging documents allege DePeña installed a separate office security system in 2023 that recorded audio of a March hallway conversation and that copies of that recording were shared with 14 people, prompting 14 wiretapping counts and one witness-intimidation count.
- Federal prosecutors allege roughly $1.6 million in Economic Injury Disaster Loan funds issued to DePeña’s business were diverted to pay property loans, campaign expenses and personal taxes, forming the basis of the federal fraud and money-laundering case.
- The council has hired CliftonLarsonAllen to review city governance and recall organizers have 30 days to collect about 7,000 valid signatures to force a recall election while state and federal court proceedings continue with a state status hearing set for Dec. 9.