Councilor Herar Has Been Subjected To An Expensive Code Of Conduct Investigation When It Could Have Been Resolved Amicably As Herar Says He Did Nothing Wrong And Has Now Filed A Lawsuit!

Well respected and much loved Mission councilor Ken Herar, who is known for his community work including Cycling4Diversity and many other initiatives, has been subject to an expensive Code of Conduct investigation led by City’s Mayor Paul Horn over alleged misconduct but Herar says he did nothing wrong and the matter could have been resolved amicably by all parties concerned. Herar said instead Horn has weaponized the charges in an attempt to smear his reputation which has been built over decades with hard work and commitment to what Herar holds dear – the community. “This was a political hit job to smear my name politically,” Herar told DESIBUZZCanada. “My wife and I had genuine and sincere spirit of intent and we did nothing wrong eventually when the smoke cleared. This could have easily been resolved through a conversation. Instead, the Code of Conduct was weaponized against me, which we see happening in many municipalities to demonize opponents.” Herar, who has filed a lawsuit against the Mayor and the City, said he feels race is a factor in this ongoing campaign against him which has cost the city tens of thousands of dollars in hiring an investigator and now legal expenses which is a waste of City resources. “Yes, I do see race as an issue because if it was a Caucasian councilor, this would have never happened,” Herar said.

By R. Paul Dhillon – Editor DESIBUZZCanada

MISSION – Well respected and much loved Mission councilor Ken Herar, who is known for his community work including Cycling4Diversity and many other initiatives, has been subject to an expensive Code of Conduct investigation led by City’s mayor Paul Horn over alleged misconduct but Herar says he did nothing wrong and the matter could have been resolved amicably by all parties concerned.

Herar said instead Horn has weaponized the charges in an attempt to smear his reputation which has been built over decades with hard work and commitment to what Herar holds dear – the community.

“This was a political hit job to smear my name politically,” Herar told DESIBUZZCanada. “My wife and I had genuine and sincere spirit of intent and we did nothing wrong eventually when the smoke cleared. This could have easily been resolved through a conversation. Instead, the Code of Conduct was weaponized against me, which we see happening in many municipalities to demonize opponents.”

Herar has had enough of the harassment and filed a lawsuit against the Mayor and the City to clear his name and seek “Natural Justice” in legal terms for what he feels is a false case built against him by spending tens of thousands of dollars on an expensive investigation. 

Herar’s lawyer Devin M. Klassen told DESIBUZZCanada the judicial review proceeding expressly challenges the independence of the investigation. 

“Once the review is completed Mr. Herar will review our current Notice of Civil Claim regarding misfeasance in public office and make a decision on whether to proceed further in light of the Court of Appeal's decision in G.D. v. South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority, 2024 BCCA 252 wherein the court discussed the reckless misuse of one's position,” Klassen told DESIBUZZCanada.

Herar also feels race is a factor in this ongoing campaign against him which has cost the city tens of thousands of dollars in hiring an investigator and now legal expenses which is a waste of City resources.  

“Yes, I do see race as an issue because if it was a Caucasian councilor, this would have never happened,” Herar said. “The fact of the matter is I was targeted, being the lone vote on many issues over the past six years and standing up for the community and this campaign against me is the direct result of this. In reality, we never broke any Code of Conduct with the whole process being stacked against me and my wife. It certainly makes it difficult to do your job effectively, having to always looking for over your shoulder because you are worried what else someone is going craft against you.

“Honestly, the community suffers the most because they expect us as councilors to resolve our issues respectfully, which we tried on a few occasions with the Mayor and Council so that the matter does not end up in court. Our local community has been very supportive of us through this process and they see that we’ve been victimized,” Herar told DESIBUZZCanada.

When contacted by DESIBUZZCanada, Mayor Horn said Herar’s accusations of racial bias is not accurate as the mayor did not participate in the votes that led to Herar's censure and added that race has never been a factor in any of our Council business. 

“I have no personal issue with Councillor Herar and we have never had any sort of negative interaction,” Horn said. “The matters in these complaints were raised independently of council and were investigated appropriately. Councillor Herar had his legal representation paid for by the city, and participated in giving his side during the investigation. When the investigation was completed, the mayor played no role in the determinations made by Council and the decisions about censure. Our council is an effective and respectful group. Councillor Herar has always been treated with respect and remains a valuable part of our team. We welcome his participation.”

Mayor Horn further denied weaponizing the code of conduct against Herar and said that was the key reason for using a third-party investigator to ensure fairness. But he didn’t address the tens of thousands of dollars paid to the investigator.

“The role of the mayor in this interaction was to advance two separate complaints, which were raised by staff, according to our policy. After doing so, the mayor presented the facts that he had received, but was otherwise detached from the process. In order to ensure a fair and unbiased process, the mayor did not participate in meetings that led to the censure of Councillor Herar,” Horn told DESIBUZZCanada.

Horn called the complaint against Herar serious even though Herar said he did nothing wrong in two incidents listed in the complaint, which was also born out by the expensive investigation. Horn also did not state, contrary to what Herar’s legal team told DESIBUZZCanada, that it was Horn himself who made the complaint when he was never even present for both incidents. But Horn insists the expensive investigative report did substantiate the complaint against Herar

“The report found that both of the complaints were substantiated,” Horn said. “According to the City's Code of Conduct, the correct process for more serious complaints involves engaging an independent and qualified investigator. The complaints were not of a personal nature between members of Council, so there was no opportunity for members to simply meet and resolve a personal difference. The complaints were raised by staff members and forwarded to the mayor for action. The mayor followed the process spelled out in the city's policy in order to ensure it was thorough, confidential and fair.”

But Herar’s lawyer Klassen said despite Horn’s assertion, the report does not find "substantiation" and the Mayor did not address the cost of the investigation which is in the tens of thousands or that the Code of Conduct issue was suitable for private handling. Klassen further added that Horn skipped the Code's informal handling option and went straight to the nuclear option of a formal complaint. 

“Also I remind you the Mayor was the complainant and experienced none of the activities and was not even interviewed in the report (allegedly) despite being the complainant,” Klassen told DESIBUZZCanada. “Also the flawed report was carried out by a motivated investigator who was not allowed to be interviewed on her methods nor were the witnesses (whom she refused to reveal until just before the hearing) able to be interviewed by us.”

Klassen also called Horn’s assertion about the complaint process incorrect. 

“The "Informal Complaint Process" at Schedule 3 of the 2020 Code of Conduct at paragraph 1 says "a. ANY COMPLAINANT who has identified or witnessed conduct by another Member that they believe to be noncompliant with this Policy may take the following steps:" It was brought up at the hearing that the 2020 Code of Conduct is HORRIBLY drafted, but nonetheless "Any complainant" means anybody even if later language says "by another member". Secondly, the Mayor was the complainant officially not these other people and he is lying in framing it as if he was a Code of Conduct authorized intermediary,” Klassen told DESIBUZZCanada.

In the complaint (see photos below), it is clear that Horn is the one making the complaint even though he claims he was following City policy.

Klassen said the mayor isn’t being in honest in addressing what transpired with the way the complaint against Herar was handled or the way Horn personally got involved in taking it to it’s extreme end when it was nothing more than a simple misunderstanding.

“The problem is that the Mayor already was discussing with the CAO to hire (Leanne) Walsh the investigator before even filing his complaint. Then he filed it, brought it before the council including Mr. Herar, didn't tell the council what it was about, voted on it himself (you can't vote on authorizing your own prosecutions) and caused Walsh to be hired. You can see in the complaint attached above he's already describing "working with her" as if he's a co-prosecutor. The Mayor is acting as the complainant and the prosecutor which is completely unacceptable. Also an interested party cannot sit on a decision making panel and vote on decisions in which they are interested. This is a fatal breach of the Rules of Procedural Fairness and Natural Justice. The Mayor did this on the 17 April 2023 meeting in which he hired Walsh to prosecute his complaint that he had not told council about. Then he did it again when he sat and presided over a meeting in August when a resolution was tabled to settle the complaint. During a recent court action (unfinished) the presiding Justice asked with some incredulity why we were challenging evidence of the city because the evidence of the city laid out that Mayor Horn took such participation when that is not allowed. Whether counsel for the city has relayed this indicator of likely court disapproval at the full hearing to the council is another question,” Klassen told DESIBUZZCanada.

Herar in his affidavit for the current legal case against Horn and the City also acknowledges racial bias which states that racial remarks were made by some councillors toward South Asian people in the past. 

“I wasn’t going to make a big deal about this, but what happened to me is a clear indication of the mindset of certain councillors, in my opinion,” Herar told DESIBUZZCanada. “I’ve fought my whole life trying to educate and defend others like our visit to the Youth Centre and now, I find myself on the other side, unfortunately. I’m also not quick to call out racism, but what was forwarded to me by community members was very concerning at the very least.

“In the Galloway report completed in 2022 I brought these concerns forward  about racial remarks, but for some strange reason my concerns were taken out. The question still remains, why, I find this extremely odd. After the report was completed it was buried and never shared with council until I asked for it a year later in the fall of 2023 to share with my lawyer.  What I read was disturbing and realized why they didn’t want to share this especially with me and approximately six months after the report was completed, a Code of Conduct was filed against me. I feel I was definitely targeted as soon as this term started.”

Herar further alleges that he was subjected to “ridicule, pressure and threats” by city council and staff.

The notice of civil claim was filed Sept. 13 by Herar and names Mayor Paul Horn; chief administrative officer Mike Younie; parks, recreation and culture director Louis Dauphin; the City of Mission; and two anonymous people.

The matter relates to two situations, the first of which occurred on March 13, 2023.

Herar, who runs a charitable organization called Spinning for Diversity (formerly Cycling4Diversity), received a proclamation from Horn declaring a day known as Hands Up Against Racism, reported Mission City Record newspaper.

In the court documents, Herar states that he wanted to get a photo to commemorate the occasion and submit it to the Mission City Record.

He initially went to a local fire hall with the intention of having firefighters holding their hands up “against racism” and displaying the proclamation.

However, the firefighters were out on a call so Herar and his wife Pamela decided to go to the Mission Youth Centre.

The documents state that Herar checked with an in-charge employee to see if it was OK to get a photo with any of the kids who agreed to be in the picture.

A photo was taken, and the Herars decided to order pizza for the youths, according to the documents.

Herar said he later received a text message from the employee of the youth centre that her manager – presumed to be Dauphin – objected to the photo being taken and said it should not be published.

Herar agreed to the request, and the photo was not used.

The second incident took place on March 31, 2023 after Herar had undergone eye surgery and was having trouble seeing.

He states that he and his wife went to city hall for help in accessing his municipal account. When a city employee asked Herar if he had his city password, he responded that “we” had it, “implying that Ms. Herar knew where the password was, not that she knew it.”

The documents state that Herar’s wife informed him that he kept his passwords locked in his personal email account, and he retrieved his city password from there.

“Ms. Herar never read or accessed confidential information that was for the eyes of Mr. Herar alone,” the notice of civil claim states.

The documents state that on April 17, Horn filed a complaint with Younie of “code of conduct” violations involving Herar.

In part, the complaint stated that Herar “attempted to use pizza to ‘resolve a situation’ with the children at the youth centre,” “breached confidentiality and disclosed unauthorized access” and “behaved dishonestly.”

This was false as no one from the Mission Youth Centre had made any complaint and according to messages received by Herar, the youth enjoyed the pizza and had absolutely no issues.

An investigation of the claims began, and Herar received what he says was a “significantly redacted” copy of the concluding report on Sept. 12.

According to the notice of civil claim, the report stated there were no complaints from the youth centre and that the “closed folder password was not shared by Councillor Herar with his spouse.”

But the report recommended he be found liable for breaching council’s code of conduct by attending the youth centre “in the manner he did” and by “sharing his password for the network with his spouse by having her attend a councillor training session.” Incredibly, none of these things happened or were of the nature that required an expensive investigation against Herar. If this does not point to some of kind of agenda against Herar then what does?

Sanctions imposed following a breach include a formal warning letter, a request that the person issue a letter of apology, a requirement to attend training, suspension or removal from internal and external committees, limits on travel and expenses, and limited access to certain city facilities, reported Mission City Record.

In an earlier statement, Herar said while he remains appreciative of his colleague’s efforts, there are serious shortcomings with the way the complaint was handled that call the resolutions into question.

 “Many significant mistakes have been made in the bringing, conduct, and outcome of this process. I have been denied to know who the complainant actually is and still do not know who it is. I have no idea exactly what the complained conduct is because I do not know who complained and therefore what the complaint means. This complaint is nothing but a ‘he said, she said, that they said, that he said’ with no ability to know who the various ‘he, they, shes’ are or what they said,” Herar said.

Herar said he is often asked about the complaint and demands an explanation on both his behalf and the public’s. 

The court documents state that since the complaint against him was launched, Herar “has been subject to clandestine and closed meetings by the council wherein he has been subjected to ridicule, insult and pressure.”

Herar is seeking a dismissal of the “administrative proceedings” connected with the complaint letter, court costs, and monetary damages for “bringing the dismissed proceeding in bad faith or for an improper purpose.”

The lawsuit is before the courts and none of the allegations have been proved in court.

The complaint filed against Herar involved council’s 2020 code of conduct. The code was updated in May 2023, apparently to fall in line with the way complaint was handled against Herar.

With Files from Mission City Record