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Council chides Knight
Medford councilman says Big Deal By Jessica Smith Medford City Councilman Skip Knight says a public tongue-lashing from his peers will do little to change the way he conducts himself as an elected city official. Knight, who was criticized Thursday for lambasting the head of a city department in a dispute over an expense report, shrugged off the council’s concerns. "I don’t answer to these people (the City Council)," Knight said after a lunch-hour meeting to discuss the matter. "I answer to the people who put me in office. That’s where my allegiance is." Still, the council voted unanimously to admonish Knight, pointing to what some called a pattern of bad behavior. The council planned to discuss the issue in a closed session, but Knight requested the issue be brought before the public in an open meeting. Previous confrontations with city employees — including a 1997 dispute with a Medford police officer who cited Knight for not wearing a seat belt and a 1998 incident where Knight publicly questioned a former job performance — show that Knight has a history of mistreating staffers in his six years as a city official, Council President Sal Esquivel said. Most recently, Knight was accused of being disrespectful to Jef Faw, the city finance director, following a conflict over an expense report filed by Knight. Earlier this summer, Knight submitted a report seeking reimbursement from the city’s finance committee for a meal that was apparently provided to him at no charge while representing the city at a conference. The committee denied the request. In a July 27 recorded telephone message to Faw, Knight voiced his frustration over the matter. "You essentially accused me of being a liar and a thief. I resent that," Knight said in the recording. "And I’m going on the record right now that you and I are going to have a difficult time working together in the future." Several council members present at the July finance meeting said they felt Knight’s comment to Faw was unwarranted. "If Mr. Knight disagrees with staff, he strikes out," Esquivel said. He urged the council to send Knight a message that his behavior "is not only inappropriate and unprofessional but that it must cease." The council agreed, voting that the discussion would serve as a warning to Knight. The council also stripped Knight of his privileges for reimbursed travel outside Southern Oregon, meaning he will have to abandon plans to attend two national conferences. Knight said the council’s chastisement was not a "big issue" or one that will change the way he serves the city. "I’m 60 years old and I’m not going to respond to a reprimand from someone who’s my junior," Knight said. "I’m not going to change my behavior ... I might modify it." |
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