Altadena Library Director Ready to Come Back?

Altadena Library District (Photo – George Patton).

Altadena Library Director Mindy Kittay yesterday submitted to the Library District a 47 page Government Code Claim (see bottom of article) alleging that Trustee Ira Bershatsky harassed her in retaliation for her blowing the whistle on Brown Act violations and because of her female gender and progressive political views. Her Claim also alleged he repeatedly libeled her, invaded her privacy rights, and caused breaches of her contract with the Library District.

At the Library Trustee’s meeting on March 29, Kittay’s attorneys alleged several Brown Act violations by what her attorneys described as “the male Board of Trustees majority” – Bershatsky, John McDonald, and Armando Zambrano. Board of Trustees McDonald resigned the next day. The Government Code Claim alleges much more extensive Brown Act violations in which Bershatsky took part; it sets out 28 different specific violations of the Brown Act.

Kittay’s attorney, Dale Gronemeier, said today:

The male Board majority had a pattern and practice of conducting the public’s business secretly in violation of the open government principles of the Brown Act. By making Public Records Act requests for emails between Trustees, we have identified at 28 specific violations. But we have outstanding requests that have not yet been satisfied that we are certain will unearth many more violations.

Kittay is presently on medical leave because of stress. Her Claim described in 13 pages harassment by Bershatsky, McDonald, and Zambrano from July, 2017, through January 23, 2018, when she went on it leave. The Claim listed her on leave reason was because “after 6 ½ months of negativity heaped on her by the male Board Majority, Director Kittay finally had to leave work at mid-day on January 23 and get medical assistance; her doctor promptly signed an off-work order.”

Gronemeier said that McDonald’s resignation is helping create the conditions in which allows Director Kittay to go back to work, saying “We hope she can return to a non-hostile workplace within the next 2-4 weeks.” Gronemeier indicated she would be attending the monthly meeting of the Board of Trustees at 5 pm Monday afternoon “as part of her therapy beginning to psychologically adjust to returning to what had been a hell-hole for her.” Gronemeier added that a Government Code Claim is “required to proceed to court on some matters, but we hope we can resolve this and get her back to work.”

> Below is Mindy Kittay’s Government Code Claim:
(Hover on document to scroll through pages).

Source: dgronemeier.com