An investigation into Cincinnati Council Member Seth Walsh's office concludes there's not enough evidence to support the claim that city resources were used for campaign purposes. However, part of the ethics complaint will be forwarded to the Ohio Ethics Commission for further investigation.
The report from the city's Office of Ethics and Good Government was released to reporters Tuesday night, just 30 minutes before a meeting of the Cincinnati Democratic Committee. A tight majority of precinct executives ultimately supported endorsing Walsh along with eight other candidates.
The investigation began in May, when Tristina Allen sent an email to Chris Liu alleging she was fired from Walsh's office in retaliation for raising concerns about doing campaign work on city time.
Allen negotiated a $30,000 settlement with the City Solicitor's Office, in which Allen agrees not to sue over her termination.
Get caught up: Council Member Seth Walsh under investigation after fired aide files ethics complaint
Notably, the question of retaliation is not part of the investigation: "Personnel disputes, including potential or filed litigation arising out of those disputes, are outside the scope of the Office of Ethics and Good Government," Liu wrote.
The report addresses two potential ethics violations: that city resources were used for Walsh's council campaign; and Allen living rent-free with Walsh's campaign manager during the early days of her employment, which could violate a state law prohibiting "supplemental compensation to a government employee."
Liu's report says he saw no evidence that "any city resources were used to fundraise for Councilmember Walsh's campaign, to gather signatures for him to appear on the ballot, or any other purely campaign activity."
Walsh says his understanding is that the portion of the complaint being referred to the Ohio Ethics Commission is not related to his actions.
"I'm glad the report came out saying what it said and we can move forward and start doing the good work again for the citizens," Walsh said.
In an interview after the endorsement meeting, Walsh declined to answer any other questions about the investigation.
Allen declined to comment.
See the full investigation report below (story continues after):
Investigation - Office of Councilmember Walsh by WVXU News on Scribd
Campaign work on city time
This portion of the complaint centers on Brianna Ledsome, Walsh's now-former campaign manager. Ledsome declined to comment for this story.
Allen said Ledsome acted as a supervisor, assigning tasks to her and other employees, and contributed to a "heavy campaign focus vs operating the office."
The report notes elected officials and their staff had "broad latitude to participate in political activity" as long as they take care to avoid doing so outside of their jobs at City Hall.
RELATED: Ready for the 2023 Cincinnati Council election? The city's ethics office is
"Given the facts available through this investigation, there is insufficient evidence that city resources were used for campaign purposes," Liu writes. "It is not an ethics violation to use a 'consultant' or a 'campaign manager' to assist in legitimate city activities, such as developing policy initiatives or priorities."
Although Liu concluded there's not enough evidence to support an ethics violation, he also offers five recommendations for all city elected officials, aimed at clarifying the role of campaign staff in official city offices and business.
"The management practices here, specifically Ledsome sending the written job offer and being authorized by Councilmember Walsh to speak on his behalf to Allen about her performance, created unnecessary confusion in the operation of the Council office," Liu wrote.
The recommendations are summarized below and available in full on pages 11-12 of the full report, embedded above:
- When hiring city staff, ensure that a formal written offer of employment is sent using official city letterhead and sent using city email addresses. [Reporter's note: Allen's employment offer was sent from Ledsome on Walsh's behalf]
- Develop office policies for coordination between Council staff and any campaign staff to ensure that roles and responsibilities are clear. If Council staff engage in campaign activity, document the division of work and ensure city resources are not used for campaign activity.
- Ensure that management of city staff, particularly hiring and performance evaluations, is done by city officials.
- Require all city staff to seek advisory ethics opinions before accepting any thing of value from outside entities or people, including campaign staff. Anything of value may include free temporary lodging or reduced rent.
- Use city email and devices when conducting city business.
Free lodging
Allen accepted the job in Walsh's office in early January, a few weeks after Walsh was sworn in to complete the term of now-Congressman Greg Landsman.
Allen was living in Columbus at the time. The offer letter, sent from Ledsome's email address, included the proposed salary and an exact start date, and required in-person work on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with a virtual or remote option on Thursdays and Fridays.
"We will ensure you have housing provided when you are in Cincinnati," Ledsome said.
RELATED: For the first time, Cincinnati council and mayor have a Code of Conduct they must abide by
That housing arrangement involved Ledsome letting Allen sleep on the couch in her one-bedroom apartment from mid-January until the first week of March, when Allen found an apartment of her own in Cincinnati.
According to the report, this may have violated state law. Specifically, Revised Code 102.03(F) states "[n]o person shall promise or give to a public official or employee anything of value that is of such a character as to manifest a substantial and improper influence upon the public official or employee with respect to that person's duties." The law also prohibits a public official or employee from accepting something of value.
R.C. 2921.43(A)(1) also prohibits the offer or acceptance of supplemental compensation to a government employee, "to perform the public servant's official duties, to perform any other act or service in the public servant's public capacity, for the general performance of the duties of the public servant's public office or public employment, or as a supplement to the public servant's public compensation[.]"
Allen said Walsh made the arrangements for this living situation.
Walsh denied that, saying in his written statement for the investigation he played no role in the arrangement: "I did not direct it, encourage it, or authorize it ... it was not in any way a part of Ms. Allen's compensation as part of my office staff at City Hall."
For her part, Ledsome described the agreement as providing a helpful hand to a fellow young woman working in the government/political arena.
The report points out the employment offer letter seems to dispute that: "[the letter] specifically references that 'we will ensure you have housing provided when you are in Cincinnati,' and then Ledsome provided the temporary housing."
The report specifically references a potential violation by Allen or Ledsome, if the free living accommodations could be considered improper supplemental compensation.
Walsh declined to answer questions about the Ohio Ethics Commission investigation. In a brief interview Tuesday night, he said he takes accountability.
From the archives: New report recommends major changes after corruption at City Hall
"The buck stops with me at the end of the day," Walsh said. "I've learned a lot over the last several weeks, last several months, and we're going to continue to work to be better as a person and professional."
"As Allen and Ledsome are not currently employed by the city, the Office of Ethics and Good Government has no authority to compel them to provide further information which could help definitively answer whether the living arrangement was proper," the report says. "As such, that issue will be reported to the Ohio Ethics Commission for an impartial external review."
$30k settlement
Allen negotiated a $30,000 settlement with the City Solicitor's Office, in which Allen agrees not to sue over her termination.
Walsh says he is in contact with the City Solicitor's Office about potentially returning $30,000 from his council office budget to cover that settlement. That would still be taxpayer money.
