Stinging rebuke against district attorney
Board members say they don’t buy her sworn testimony, rule in favor of demoted prosecutor
MARTINEZ >> In a stunning reversal of an administrative law judge’s previous ruling, members of the Contra Costa Merit Board not only sided with a prosecutor who accuses District Attorney Diana Becton of political retaliation but publicly voiced doubts about
Becton’s sworn testimony.
The merit board — which handles public employee complaints and appeals — voted 4-1 in favor of rejecting a recommendation by the administrative law judge that found Becton had not committed political retaliation when she moved Deputy District Attorney Mary Knox into a felony filer position. Knox’s appeal alleged that both her placement and prior demotion from a senior position in the office came after she told Becton she was supporting Paul Graves, Becton’s opponent in the 2018 elec
tion.
But perhaps more shocking than the board’s decision, which is unlikely to carry much weight, is the fact that several board
members stopped just short of accusing Becton of lying under oath. Most notably, the members said they doubted statements by Becton and her chief deputy, Venus Johnson, that Knox was demoted after they became aware of 15 complaints against her by other DA employees.
“You mean 15 attorneys in the DA’s office are cowards and not one of them was willing to go on the record?” board member James Mellander said at the March meeting, after noting a lack of documentation surrounding the allegation. “I don’t buy that. In fact, I’m just gonna come out and say it: I think that’s a fake story. I think that’s fake news.”
Becton declined to comment on the board’s decision, through an office spokesman.
At the same meeting, board member Dennis Reigle noted the stark contrasts between the administrative law judge’s findings and the merit board’s, adding he found it strange the judge found
Becton and Johnson’s testimony to be “very credible.”
“My reading of that transcript is almost the opposite,” Reigle added. “I found the testimony to be astonishingly vague, full of, ‘I don’t remembers,’ ‘I don’t recall.’ … It really called into question — and I’m gonna use a strong word — the veracity of the DA and her chief of staff.”
Reigle later said he saw “overwhelming” evidence that Knox was subjected to political retaliation.
Becton and Johnson testified about Knox’s demotion earlier this year, after the merit board ruled in 2020 to send the case before an administrative law judge. Knox alleged that she was unfairly demoted from a senior position in the office and removed as head of the gang unit. Graves also was demoted around the same time.
During her testimony, Becton used the phrase “hand of fear” to describe Knox’s managerial style and said she and Johnson were aware of 15 complaint against Knox. These included an incident that was reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, where Knox sent an email referring to herself as a “mean mommy” and warning staff members to clean up trash from the grand jury room.
But board members questioned why Becton and Johnson didn’t submit documentation to back up the claim.
“If 15 people came to me and said there was a problem, I would have talked to them, I would have had Ms. Knox in to say her side … There was nothing, and I just think that’s unbelievable,” board member Toni Warren said.
Now that the board has ruled, it remains to be seen what — if any — further action it can take. Board members were advised by their counsel that the board doesn’t have the power to reinstate Knox as a senior, because a DA is allowed to choose his or her upperechelon staff. The board also cannot award damages, nor can it order the county to pay Knox’s attorney’s fees. Board members will revisit the issue at a hearing in May.
The lone “no” vote came from board member Eizo Kobayashi, who said that he considered Knox to be an “outstanding” prosecutor but didn’t know who to believe when it came to Knox’s ability as a supervisor.
“To me it’s not a slam dunk … because there are too many factors that we really need to look at,” Kobayashi said, later adding, “I feel like we can’t prove one or the other.”
Knox was also one of four deputy district attorneys in Contra Costa to file a still-active federal lawsuit alleging that Becton favored men over women for supervisory roles in the office.
Becton — the first woman and Black person to serve as DA — was appointed in 2017, after the previous DA, Mark Peterson, was charged with grand theft and perjury for spending tens of thousands of dollars from his campaign fund on personal expenses. Peterson pleaded guilty to felony perjury, because he signed his campaign statements — which didn’t document the illegal spending — under penalty of perjury. In 2018, Becton was elected to a four-year term.