David Smollar
Quotes

Susan McGill denies creating enemies list, but her secretary Bobbie Thacker reveals McGill's involvement

Jul 08, 2007 Filed in: McGill, Susan
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Seema Mehta, The Los Angeles Times "McGill and former district spokesman David Smollar visited the county registrar of voters and were illegally allowed to look at the recall petitions. McGill testified that she never created a list, but Thacker said that McGill gave her a list of those who gathered signatures and had her consult confidential pupil data to look up addresses, the names and schools of their children and other information."

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Trustees Draper, Benecke, Darnold and Stiff knew about enemies list and "mole"

Jan 11, 2007 Filed in: Casserly, Barbara
Barbara Casserly, The Capistrano Dispatch "CUSD Trustees knew that Jim Fleming was actively involved in fighting the recall and voted to fund an investigation into matters which they knew to have occurred that cost taxpayers over $35,000! ... included in the [Waldrip] report is an April 21, 2005 memo written by James Fleming addressed to Marlene Draper and the entire CUSD Board entitled the “Report on presumed recall effort” that referred to the parent list, and included a report from a “mole” that infiltrated the recall group. The Trustees continued to support Jim Fleming until he retired in disgrace in August 2006, and subsequently voted to pay Fleming’s criminal legal defense fees. Trustees Draper, Benecke, Darnold and Stiff refuse to acknowledge that they knew Jim Fleming was illegally fighting the recall. The self-serving “independent” investigation concluded that the only crime that might have occurred was the leaking of documents by Smollar!"

Casserly is a Mission Viejo resident and PTA leader.

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Fleming trustees have remained tight-lipped, in denial and pointing fingers at others - it's time to take responsibility

Jan 11, 2007 Filed in: Volzke, Jonathan
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Jonathan Volzke, The Capistrano Dispatch "There’s been too much silence on behalf of our elected officials over the past year. And when they did speak, it was denials a single list even existed, much less two and attempts to push the responsibility of the problems onto recall supporters, the media, the whistleblower who made it public, everyone but those elected to be responsible. That raises the most important question: What will the four veteran trustees do to apologize, to rebuild that trust?"

Volzke is the publisher of the Capistrano Dispatch.

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Registrar's errors leaned suspiciously in school district's favor

Sep 18, 2006 Filed in: OC Register
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Editorial, The Orange County Register "We find it odd that all of the registrar's mistakes leaned in one direction, especially in light of Mr. Smollar's accusations ... For instance, the possibly illegal action involved showing signed petitions, including names and addresses of the signers, to the Capo district. The registrar also incorrectly told the district that the recall election would cost the school district $600,000, when in reality the county pays for such elections. This mattered because the district then used that information as a prime part of its campaign against the recall. The report said Mr. Kelley learned about his mistake in December but didn't disclose that information for another month, according to published reports."

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Election Center prepared report without input from key witness

Sep 18, 2006 Filed in: OC Register
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Editorial, The Orange County Register "David Smollar, the former district spokesman who blew the whistle on the wrongdoing, told the Register that he was told by an elections official and by a colleague in his district that Mr. Kelley was bending the rules to allow them to see the petitions. Yet Mr. Smollar said that the Elections Center never tried to contact him, despite claims by the center that it did leave messages."

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Smollar says Flemings kept list of names ilegally obtained from registrar's office

Jul 12, 2006 Filed in: OC Register
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Editorial, The Orange County Register "Then, according to the July 11 Register, the district’s former director of communications, David Smollar, and another district official viewed the petition data at the registrar’s office and Mr. Smollar wrote down many names of recall signers, and then handed them over to Superintendent James Fleming. Mr. Fleming told the newspaper that he was uncomfortable with the list of names and handed them back to Mr. Smollar. But Mr. Smollar said that Mr. Fleming kept the list."

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Recall was unsuccessfull but touched off series of events

Feb 23, 2007 Filed in: Volzke, Jonathan
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Jonathan Volzke, The Capistrano Dispatch “The recall was unsuccessful but ultimately touched off a series of events that saw the district’s spokesman retire and leak several inflammatory documents to the public, Fleming retire after 15 years at the helm, one longtime trustee decision to not seek re-election, while two other incumbents ran but lost their normally safe seats. Other high-ranking district officials targeted by district critics have also retired.”

Volzke is the publisher of the Capistrano Dispatch.

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