Assemblywoman to face ‘remedial action’
Cristina Garcia was ‘overly familiar’ with a state employee in 2014, a report finds.
SACRAMENTO — Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens) was “overly familiar” with a state employee during a 2014 legislative softball game, in violation of the Assembly’s sexual harassment policy, according to an investigative report made public Wednesday.
Other allegations made by Assembly aide Daniel Fierro, including accusations that Garcia touched his genitals and that she retaliated against him after he sought a consultant contract with a school district, were not substantiated by the investigation.
Investigators found “the preponderance of the evidence supported a finding that Assemblymember Cristina Garcia, while in a state of inebriation, encountered Mr. Fierro in the dugout of the 2014 legislative softball game, grabbed his arm for support, put her hand on his back, and was overly familiar with him in a way that she would not have been had she been sober,” said a letter from John T. Kennedy, a private attorney whose law firm represented the Assembly during the investigation.
The investigation was conducted by private attorney Amy Oppenheimer.
“However, a preponderance of the evidence did not support findings that Assemblymember Cristina Garcia touched Mr. Fierro on his buttock or genitals, or that this was a sexual encounter,” Kennedy added.
As a result of the findings, he added, “appropriate remedial action designed to prevent future similar conduct by Assemblymember Cristina Garcia will be imposed.”
The state last month rejected a $1-million legal claim for damages by Fierro that alleged Garcia retaliated against him for accusing her of harassment. A legal claim is required to be submitted before a lawsuit can be filed against the state.
“It’s appalling that the Assembly would take it upon itself to substantiate the substance of the complaint and then decide for itself what is sexual in nature and what is not,” Fierro said Wednesday. “This is a blow to victims’ rights.”
The latest findings are a follow-up to an initial investigation that concluded Garcia had “commonly and pervasively” used vulgar language. The original investigation also found that Garcia asked staff to run personal errands and that she had “disparaged other elected officials.”
The new report was issued after additional witnesses were interviewed.
Garcia, who before Fierro’s allegations was a leader of the #MeToo movement in Sacramento against sexual harassment, issued a statement Wednesday that said she is “pleased” that the investigation has concluded, though she disagrees with the previous findings that led to her being removed from legislative committees.
“I again apologize if language I used in the past made anyone feel uncomfortable,” Garcia said. “I look forward to continuing to serve my constituents as an advocate for good government, environmental justice, and on women’s issues.”
Garcia was reelected Nov. 6 to her fourth two-year term, receiving 70% of the vote after a challenge from Republican Mike Simpfenderfer.
She is one of several state officials to be caught up in allegations of sexual misconduct in the last year, with resignations submitted by Democratic Assemblymen Raul Bocanegra and Matt Dababneh and state Sen. Tony Mendoza.
With the Legislature set to begin the new session Monday, it remains unclear whether Garcia will be able to resume her membership in Assembly committees from which she was temporarily removed by Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon earlier this year.
“It has not yet been determined what action will be taken in regard to her committee assignments,” Kevin Liao, a spokesman for Rendon, said Friday.
Members who are removed from committees are relegated to voting on bills when they come to the floor.
As for the “remedial action” ordered last week in a letter from Rendon, Liao noted that when an initial investigation was concluded in May, the speaker required Garcia to complete sensitivity training conducted by an outside expert, participate in sessions with an employee assistance program counselor and receive individual training on the Assembly’s existing sexual harassment and violence prevention policy.
The letter last week “says additional remedial action may be taken; those exact actions have not been determined,” Liao added.