Mired in controversy, township council fires another integrity commissioner

A divided township council in eastern Ontario has become so dysfunctional that it has voted on four integrity commissioner reports this month alone, and dismissed two integrity commissioners.

The Rideau Lakes Township council on Tuesday made public an integrity commissioner report finding that a councillor had sexually harassed a staff member.

But a majority of council voted against docking Coun. Linda Carr's pay for 15 days as recommended because they did not accept that the accusations were true.

Carr told CBC on Thursday that the accusations against her were false and politically motivated. 

"Being on council turned into a nightmare," she said. 

Recent council meetings have featured testy and at times heated exchanges between councillors and Mayor Arie Hoogenboom. 

Hoogenboom, who voted in favour of sanctioning Carr, acknowledged that divisions within the council have been hindering its ability to govern the township, located about 50 kilometres north of Kingston, Ont. 

"It's quite difficult because we've had a number of integrity commissioner complaints in the past number of months and we continue to have a council that does not agree with each other," he said. 

The integrity commissioner is intended as an independent and impartial position that investigates allegations from members of the public and municipal employees about council members breaching their code of conduct. But some Rideau Lakes councillors, including Carr, say the mechanism is being weaponized to prosecute vendettas. 

"We are having a little bit of a problem with our council, as you can tell," Carr said.

'Off-colour' remark

The allegations against Carr stem from a complaint made to integrity commissioner Tony Fleming last October suggesting she had made an inappropriate comment to a member of staff. 

Fleming's report was made public on Tuesday after the council voted twice in September to keep its contents private. At an August council meeting, Coun. Paula Banks called the investigation "inappropriate," "flawed" and the result of a "personal vendetta."

The report detailed how a complainant alleged that Carr had asked a staff member before a committee meeting: "Are you here to work or to just keep showing off your fine [redacted] self to the crowd?" 

"The redacted word would have identified an individual," Fleming told Tuesday's meeting when asked what it was. 

Carr denied making the comment and several witnesses supported her denial. 

But Fleming found more credible the testimony of several other witnesses who were unequivocal that she had made an inappropriate comment. In particular, one witness recalled that the remark was about the staff member's looks and that it was "off-colour".

Fleming concluded on the balance of probabilities that Carr had made the comment, which he determined amounted to sexual harassment and a "serious breach" of council's code of conduct. 

He recommended the council suspend Carr's pay for 15 days, a penalty he deemed "reflective of this seriousness" and "intended to deter future contraventions of this nature." 

'I'm tired of the nonsense'

The council has dismissed Fleming as integrity commissioner, with several councillors questioning whether his position as solicitor to the municipality amounted to a conflict of interest.

"I'm tired of the nonsense with these integrity commissioner reports," Coun. Jeff Banks said at Tuesday's meeting.

Earlier this month, the council narrowly passed motions to dock Coun. Paula Banks's pay for 16 days after she called the Rideau Lakes Grassroots Group a "hate group," while Coun. Marcia Maxwell lost 42 days of pay for helping the group distribute flyers criticizing the council. 

But the council also voted to dismiss Bill Hunter, the integrity commissioner who investigated those complaints. Hunter replaced Fleming. 

Responding to his dismissal, Hunter told an Oct. 7 council meeting: "It will be the third IC in 12 months, but that's good. Let's see where that goes."