Turmoil in Sacramento over alleged harassers
State Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León said Thursday that he has asked his colleague and ex-roommate, Sen. Tony Mendoza, to take a leave of absence as investigators probe allegations that Mendoza sexually harassed several women.
“I believe it is the right thing to do at this time,” de León said.
But Mendoza, D-Artesia (Los Angeles County), hasn’t stepped away, and critics quickly lambasted de León, a Los Angeles Democrat, saying his asking for a leave isn’t enough.
“Many of us have been waiting for Sen. Mendoza to do the right thing and resign, but that has not happened,” said Andy Vidak, R-Hanford (Kings County). “The Senate Democrat leadership has failed in their responsibility to request that Mendoza resign.”
De León, who is challenging U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein in next year’s Senate race, called for Mendoza to step down as a coalition of women is accusing lawmakers of fostering a culture of sexual harassment — in part by making it difficult for women to complain
without being subjected to retaliation.
Two assemblymen — Matt Dababneh and Raul Bocanegra, both Democrats from Los Angeles County — have stepped down in recent weeks amid allegations of sexual misconduct. The Los Angeles Times reported Thursday that a 26-year-old woman has filed a police report alleging that Dababneh had sex with her without her consent several times in 2014, a charge Dababneh denied.
On Thursday, de León took steps to help the Senate gain the confidence of women who want to file complaints.
The state Senate hired a pair of California law firms to independently investigate allegations of sexual misconduct and to host a confidential hot line for victims and tipsters, de León announced.
The senators also hired a rape crisis group to support victims within the Senate and to educate Senate staff about sexual misconduct.
“The Senate will work with the Assembly to ensure that all legislative employees have the protections they need to feel safe and respected in their workplace,” de León said. “This is just the beginning of a long road to overhaul to the way the California Legislature handles complaints of sexual harassment.”
The move comes amid increasing pressure to expel Mendoza, after three women have come forward with allegations of sexual misconduct against Mendoza, including a Sacramento State University fellow who asked the senator for a job and instead received repeated invitations to visit him at home.
Mendoza has denied wrongdoing.
On Thursday, Vidak unveiled a lengthy resolution he’d drafted to oust Mendoza.
“A simple suspension, with or without pay, is not an enough,” Vidak said.
De León shared a Sacramento apartment with Mendoza until last month, when he moved out and removed Mendoza from committees he served on, including the chairmanship of the powerful Insurance, Banking and Financial Institutions Committee.
De León said he has asked Mendoza to take a leave of absence pending the outcome of a Senate investigation that began in October. But that internal process — in which lawmakers can investigate and discipline their colleagues — has been widely criticized as a conflict of interest that has allowed a culture of sexual misconduct to fester for years. Numerous women working in both the state Senate and the Assembly have come forward this fall with allegations of sexual misconduct against lawmakers and other men who work in and around the Capitol.
The Senate has transferred the Mendoza investigation to an independent outside investigator.
Last month, de León and other state senators revised Senate rules so that the lawmakers can no longer review complaints of sexual harassment against themselves or their staff.
That change prompted a bipartisan panel of senators to hire the law firms to conduct independent investigations on contract for two years.
They are Van Dermyden Maddux, which investigates workplace misconduct, and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, which specializes in internal investigations.
Heading the team of lawyers will be Benjamin Wagner, the managing partner of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s Palo Alto office and a former federal prosecutor in Sacramento, and Deborah Maddux, a former attorney for the University of California and the California Fair Political Practices Commission.
“I personally have conducted hundreds and hundreds of investigations,” Maddux said. “Many times I have sustained those claims. Many times I have not. We will conduct thorough, fair and impartial investigation.”
Maddux announced a confidential hot line, (800) 729-1443, for victims of sexual harassment or assault within the Senate, or anyone who has information about it.
The Senate also hired Weave Inc., a Sacramento nonprofit that provides crisis intervention services for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in Sacramento County.