Ethics commission advances hearing on deputy's website use; dismisses two other complaints

The Clark County Ethics Review Commission voted to send one complaint to a public hearing and dismissed two others after reviewing investigation reports at its May meeting.

On complaint 202510, staff reported that complainant Bob Williamson alleged Duncan Haas, identified in the record as chief civil deputy with the Clark County Sheriff's Office and a member of the Charter Review Commission, used images of himself in uniform and adjacent to a county law enforcement vehicle on his private consulting websites and encouraged staff to watch for his name on a charter ballot. "The report concludes that Mr. Haas may have violated HR Policy 13.1 by posting on his personal business websites two introductory statements about his position as chief civil deputy...a photo in which he was wearing a sheriff's uniform and a badge while standing next to his county law enforcement vehicle," counsel Katie Jolma told the commission. After discussing the investigator's recommendations, commissioners voted to move complaint 202510 to the hearing phase so Mr. Haas may testify and call witnesses.

The commission found that complaint 202509, involving conduct by a Mr. Weber, did not meet the standard for an ethics violation, describing the conduct as "ill-advised" but not rising to a violation after reviewing the investigation. The commission similarly determined that complaint 202602, filed by Rebecca Rodriguez Nevils alleging conflicts and improper influence by Robert Couch related to the county's contract with the Humane Society of Southwest Washington, did not constitute an ethics violation; commissioners described those allegations primarily as differences of opinion rather than violations of the code.

Commissioners instructed staff to notify the parties in complaint 202510 of the public hearing date once it is set and asked both sides to be prepared to address whether HR Policy 13.2 falls within the commission's purview. The commission referenced HR Policy 13.1, charter provisions that establish the Ethics Review Commission, and general RCW-based rules on conflicts and public officers.

The commission's votes on the complaints were recorded as procedural voice votes; motions to dismiss or advance the cases carried with commissioners saying "I" and no recorded abstentions for these items.