JIGGY SORRELL MAYOR'S PAWN

 [The following letter was sent on October 2 from Save Blaine (one of the organizations defamed by Mayor Steward on September 8) to Jiggy Sorrell, candidate for Blaine City Council.]

Mr. Sorrell,  

 

On September 15th you proudly announced Mayor Mary Lou Steward’s endorsement, stating you were “incredibly honored” and that she demonstrated “integrity and vision” and that “her support means the world.” With respect, the public record shows otherwise.  

 

On September 8th, during an official City Council meeting, Mayor Steward, acting in her official capacity from the dais, stated the following on the record:  

 

“So I’m just going to say that I will give Mr. Lewis two weeks to do the honorable thing and resign. Otherwise, I will put forward a motion to censure, or at least for any executive session or attorney–client information having to do with the Blaine Water Coalition, Mr. Lewis will be excluded.”  

 

This was not political rhetoric. In my view, it was official, government-sponsored unlawful election interference and Official Misconduct on RCW 9A.80.010. The mayor’s statements contained four distinct unlawful acts under color of office, in my opinion:  

 

1. Unlawful Demand for Resignation – A mayor has no statutory authority to compel the resignation of another elected official.  
2. Coercive Threat of Censure – While censure can be a parliamentary tool, using it as leverage to force resignation is a coercive misuse of authority.  
3. Unauthorized Threat of Exclusion – She declared that “Mr. Lewis will be excluded” from executive sessions. As the Washington Attorney General confirmed in AGO 2017 No. 5:  
   “A governing body may seek a court order enforcing the obligation of its members to honor the confidentiality of executive sessions, but we have identified no specific authority authorizing the exclusion of members from executive sessions without court order.”
   Her statement, in my opinion, was therefore, at minimum, an unauthorized act under color of law.
   
   
4. Election Interference – Because Councilmember Lewis is also a candidate in the November election, these threats directly impacted the voters’ right to a free and equal election, in violation of Article I, Section 19 of the Washington Constitution: “All Elections shall be free and equal, and no power, civil or military, shall at any time interfere to prevent the free exercise of the right of suffrage.”
   
   In my opinion, these acts clearly meet the elements of criminal Official Misconduct under RCW 9A.80.010, which provides:
   
   “A public servant is guilty of official misconduct if, with intent to obtain a benefit or to deprive another person of a lawful right or privilege: (a) He or she intentionally commits an unauthorized act under color of law; or (b) He or she intentionally refrains from performing a duty imposed upon him or her by law.”
   
   In my view, the Mayor’s four distinct actions on September 8th — (1) unlawfully demanding a resignation, (2) issuing a coercive threat of censure, (3) declaring an unauthorized exclusion from executive session, and (4) interfering with an election — could each result in a separate count of criminal Official Misconduct under RCW 9A.80.010.
   
   And there was more. In the course of these acts, Mayor Steward also publicly branded Councilmember Lewis —a combat veteran — as a “traitor.” Jiggy - you, too, are a veteran. How can you accept the support of a mayor who labeled your fellow veteran a traitor from the dais, under color of her office? Is her endorsement so important to you that you will allow the mayor to call a combat veteran a traitor — and by accepting her endorsement, tacitly acknowledge that label yourself? What does that say about YOUR “integrity?”
   
   One question must be asked plainly: Were you aware of the mayor’s plans to use her office on September 8th to potentially unlawfully pressure your competitor — by demanding his resignation, threatening censure, declaring his exclusion from executive session, and interfering with the ongoing election?  
   
   If you were aware in advance, your acceptance of her endorsement is even more troubling, because it would mean you knowingly chose to align yourself with and benefit from conduct that appears to constitute criminal Official Misconduct — a violation of RCW 9A.80.010. If you were not aware, then your continued alignment with her after the fact suggests you are still willing to profit politically from her potentially unlawful acts, regardless of how they came about. Either way, what does this say about your “integrity” — the very quality you claim the mayor embodies?
   
   We have formally requested an investigation of her conduct under RCW 9A.80.010, and we believe that there is an active criminal inquiry into the mayor’s actions. That is the legal reality behind your campaign slogan of “integrity.” Clearly, all suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. 
   
   Mayor Steward is not an inexperienced layperson. She is a retired physician, a former professor at the University of Southern California, and has served ten years on the Blaine City Council. With this background and experience, she knew — or should have known — the limits of her authority. Her actions cannot be excused as ignorance, error or naivety.
   
   Additionally, you are accepting the endorsement of a mayor who has maintained a general public-comment ban at City Council meetings for 598 days. Whatever one’s politics, a nearly two-year halt on ordinary public comment is irreconcilable with any claim of “integrity” in public process and accountability. It is, by every indication, the longest public-comment ban in American history.
   
   Let me be clear: my objection is not rooted in support for Councilmember Lewis. In fact, I do not support him. When faced with the mayor’s threats, he responded in the press by saying that she deserved “empathy.” That was not leadership. A victim who refuses to take a stand — especially a sitting City Councilmember — has a duty to the Constitution and to the laws of Washington. To refuse to demand accountability in the face of unlawful conduct is a dereliction of that duty.  
   
   But for you, Mr. Sorrell, the standard is no less demanding. For you to know of the mayor’s unlawful actions and not to denounce them — and instead to accept and promote her endorsement — reflects qualities not worthy of office.
   
   It is my opinion that both Councilmember Lewis and you, Mr. Sorrell, should withdraw from this election. When you accept the support of a mayor whose actions appear to constitute unlawful election interference, and when Lewis refuses to take a stand against potentially unlawful conduct directed at him, Blaine is left with two candidates unwilling to meet their constitutional and legal responsibilities.  

 

It also appears that you have adopted the Mayor’s own political rolodex of contacts. Your only three elected-official endorsements are from the Mayor’s circle: Mayor Mary Lou Steward, Representative Alicia Rule, and Senator Sharon Shewmake. This reeks of the Mayor’s “anyone but Lewis” mentality. It is not a reflection of your independent credibility — and your willingness to tout these endorsements, even in the face of the Mayor’s potential unlawful activities, is deeply alarming.  

 

If you want to be a city councilmember, run on your own feet. On your own platform. Don’t hitch your wagon to a mayor who we suspect has committed criminal official misconduct, labeled your opponent a traitor, and has done everything – in spite of the law – to tip the election in your favor.   

 

Blaine needs new leadership, unafraid of the “almighty” Mayor. It is time for a new chapter defined by accountability and lawfulness, not the “good ol’ boys or gals” network where both citizens and councilmembers can be victimized by abuses of power.  

Sincerely,

SB