La Mesa City Council

Minutes of a Special Meeting

Meeting #:

Tuesday, January 25, 2022 at 5:00 P.m. - 6:00 P.m.

Location:

Council Chambers and City Manager's Conference Room

City Hall, 8130 Allison Avenue

La Mesa, California

Present:

• Mayor Arapostathis
• Vice Mayor Shu
• Councilmember Baber
• Councilmember Lothian
• Councilmember Parent

Staff:

• City Manager Humora
• Assistant City Manager Tomaino
• City Attorney Sabine
• City Clerk Wiegelman
• Police Chief Sweeney

This meeting was conducted utilizing teleconferencing and electronic means consistent with Government Code Section 54953, as amended by Assembly Bill 361, in relation to the COVID-19 State of Emergency and recommended social distancing measures.

---

1.

CALL TO ORDER

Mayor Arapostathis called the meeting to order at 5:06 p.m.

2.

PUBLIC COMMENTS

Deborah

It is imperative that you deal with the Perri Storey Situation! What she said was unacceptable. This rookie, with decades of service, must be reprimanded for what she did. If she was white she would’ve been fired! What are you going to do about this? This officer Dages charade has continued for far too long. Give the man his job back. Do the right thing. We are watching. Quit trying to satisfy the mob, and satisfy the majority. The majority is pro Dages.

Deborah submitted a comment regarding the City's Communications Manager and in support of Matthew Dages.

Mayor Arapostathis adjourned the meeting to Closed Session at 5:08 p.m.

3.

CLOSED SESSION

3.1

EXISTING LITIGATION – CLOSED SESSION CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL RELATING TO EXISTING LITIGATION PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (1) OF SUBDIVISION (D) OF SECTION 54956.9 OF THE CALIFORNIA GOVERNMENT CODE

Walter P.

I was going to write something different until I read the comments here. There are a couple of people that have commented on M. Dages and are essentially calling him a racist. The case as I understand it was never a racist issue but one of lying on his police report. It is also my understanding that he was cleared of this transgression. However now because of the actions taken by the city, people are calling him a racist. What the city has done and is continuing to do is painting a picture of M. Dages that you cannot substantiate. If this continues it is going to cost the City of La Mesa Millions. The city needs to try and mitigate the damage now or its going to cost 10 times as much in six months. Please put an end to this. La Mesa use to be the City of Jewels now we are called every conceivable disgusting thing because of what has occurred. The damage done in the riots can be fixed, our cities reputation will take decades to fix.

Thomas Paul

To the city council of La Mesa. I have lived in this city for nearly 10 years. I truly hope whatever is determined in this meeting sides on the Dages family. They have been through nearly two years of unnecessary pain and suffering because of a police officer who was doing his job. I pray that each and every one of you if possible decide to allow each and everyone of us in La Mesa to move forward. I back our law enforcement and I stand behind Dages and his wife in their fight. My eyes are wide open to what has been truly going on in my city, and my future votes in upcoming elections will be dictated on your actions as a whole. I speak for all La Mesa citizens when I say we need strong leaders more now then ever.

Cheri Robertson

Matt Dages has shown us who he is. Acquittal is not innocent. Please do not hire this person I believe to be racist and abusive back on the LMPD.

Matthew Tupper

Please do not consider reinstating Matthew Dages to the La Mesa police force. His behavior on the force was a poor reflection of our community. His behavior after being let go is a reflection of his unsuitability to be a police officer in any jurisdiction. The La Mesa Police Department has a long way to go to regain public trust and rehiring Matthew Dages would be a colossal mistake.

Brian Pedersen

I do not support any rehire of Matthew Dages. This is a fork in the road to truly exemplify LEADERSHIP to your community and not a curtail to the qualified immunity. We must show that the actions FILMED and released are not representative of what La Mesa should be. A derelict of his duty while he swore to PROTECT and not offend. Please show you support this community by not reinstating someone who showed no de-escalation in this stop. We must LEARN this isn't tolerated. And before you say "he won't do it again, we can train/adapt him", dont. There are far better people wanting a position at LMPD that would stand WITH the community. Not cause a stain on it. Baggage comes with reinstating and one that will cover federal eyesore.

Mark W.

As a La Mesa resident I was not happy how the city and police department handled this. I am extremely frustrated now knowing this could cost our city millions of disabled in legal fees. Please make this go away for the tax payers and residence of La Mesa

Rev. Marcus C. Lohrmann

As a local faith leader I am deeply troubled to learn that the La Mesa City Council is considering restoring former officer Matthew Dages to the local police force. Not only would such a decision signal the municipality's tacit acceptance of Dages' conduct as befitting an officer, but it would send shockwaves of distrust among people of color and vulnerable persons in the community. Officers are highly trained and well-compensated for their service to the community, and the community has done no disservice to Dages in expecting he perform his work to a better degree. In fact, restoring his role on the force would be a disservice to police officers who do their jobs with a high degree of excellence, integrity, and appreciation of the law. We can, and must, expect more from law enforcement.

Rebecca Littlejohn

Dear Mayor and Council Members, I have been so pleased to see the La Mesa Police Department entering a new chapter under the leadership of Chief Sweeney, who is clearly working hard to rebuild community trust and increase the professionalism of our officers. Disgraced former officer Matthew Dages being re-hired would be such a set-back. It is clear from his actions – before, during and since the incident that made him infamous – that his temperament is not a good fit with how the LMPD wants to work within our community. He has shown no understanding that anything he did was inappropriate and has made no attempt to apologize for his abusive behavior. His sense of entitlement is disturbing. You owe him nothing. Please do everything in your power to ensure he is never employed with our PD again. Thank you!

elan

RESTORE OFFICER DAGES JOB AND BACKPAY

Julio

Ashamed La Mesa voter here! Embarassed and tired of seeing our city dragged in headlines because our anti-cop city council and mayor decided to play political football with a good officer. Dages should get his job back plus emotional damages for La Mesa's improper behavior

Francios

not only do you owe dages his gainful employment back, you owe him and la mesa residents a heartfelt apology for how terribly you've messed up this situation

Esteban

Dages deserves better than what La Mesa did (and continues to do) to him. I personally am reaching out to ask city council to carefully consider if you want to continue this crusade against Dages and the following he has amassed. We're flooding every platofrm La Mesa has, demandign for the right thing to finally be done. We're not going anywhere until it is...do you want this battle with us? Signed very respectuflly: We The People

Mariane

We want Dages back in uniform!!!!

Sayed

Please, I pray you read this. I request former officer of La Mesa Matthew Dages be vindicated once and for all. Please repair this good officers name. Please dispense what he is owed. Please give him job back. God willing.

Roger

Give Dages whatever he wants. It's time for La Mesa to fix their two year old mistake so we can all move on. Outrageous what you have put him through

Ximena

we love matt dages! hire him back and apologize for all this slander and strife

jorge

We all lose the longer you insist on crucifying Dages, and by proxy the police professon. Give this officer his job and life back.

Virginia Knop

Hello, I’m Virginia Knop. I have been a La Mesa resident for over 20 years. I wanted to have my voice heard in regards to Officer Dages’ case. I have emailed council several times with no response. Now is the time we need to stand up and support our law enforcement. Enough of the lawlessness and bowing to the mob. Officer Dages was found Not Guilty in a court by a jury. I have followed his wife on local news throughout the last year as she has shown herself to be a strong and amazing woman and wife. She has shown all of us citizens the truth of what has been going on since this incident occurred and I am disgusted with the lack of leadership the council has shown. I am not sure whag this meeting is about, but I can say that I know the council holds the power to do something right for a change. We need to end this fight and close immediately. We must stand beside this officer and his family. Please I am begging you to do what is right.

Robert

PLEASE consider giving Matt Dages the financial opportunity to recover from financial ruin by paying him with our tax dollars. I’d rather they go to a human being who was vilified for nothing. My family’s heart hurts for him.

Anthony

My vote is for Dages to win this battle against you guys. Evil what you put him through for so long when he bravely wore a badge to serve your city. Think of the precedent that sets for the other 60+ officers at LMPD right now...their city does not have their back...so why would they risk their lives/careers/families/safety for a city that will vicsciously stab them in the back without hesistation

Paul J

Put Dages back on our police force or we'll elect leaders who actually have a spine to do it. La Mesa cannot simply go whichever direction the political winds blow, you MUST take a stand for your citizens and double down on law and order.

Serena

I’m ashamed as a citizen for what happened to Officer Dages. I hope this council votes to pay him what he deserves, reinstate him, and I hope you hold accountable all those who had any involvement in trying to ruin Dages.

Cathy

Reinstate Dages! Staffing levels are so low at lmpd and its la mesa's own doing. Start having the backs of the officers who bravely protect our city!

VICTOR

DAGES IS A GOOD MAN WHO DID HIS JOB! HOW DARE YOU SACRIFICE HIM TO THE TANTRUMING WOKE MOVEMENT

adelaide

La mesa wrongfully fired dages and criminally charged him. Time to pay up and own up!

Joran

Reinstate Dages. Give this good man the closure he deserves. It's a darn shame what La Mesa has done to him

Ana

STOP COWERING TO THE MOB. No one cares about their ignorant complaining, we care about LAW AND ORDER IN OUR CITY. Reinstate dages, we need more cops like him on the streets now with crime in la mesa out of control.

Kevin

You guys need to do whatever is required to rectify the utter failures of the LMPD for what they did to Matt Dages. From the last chief, to the current chief, to the city manager & city attorney, utter failure. GIVE DAGES HIS LIFE BACK!!!!

Charles

Dages' use of force was JUSTIFIED. a jury also confirmed: he did not lie nor do anything criminally wrong. Stop trying to use Dages as the city's scapegoat...your argument has fallen apart brazenly and it's time for city councilmembers to put an end to this mayhem.

Monica

Please give Matthew Dages his badge back $2 million for the pain/suffering & illegal termination because of a chief so scared of his own shadows that he let the fear of thugs destroying our city get in the way. SO WRONG

Anonymous

The jig is up. Matthew Dages was found not guilty, and the two weeks worth of trial testimony exposed how corrupt and political this whole case is. Dages clearly should have never been fired in the first place because he did nothing wrong. He was enforcing the law; his job. Stop bowing down to a few anti-police “activists” and do the right thing and reinstate him!

Carlos

I respectfully ask you to do whatever you must to make things right for Officer Matt Dages. Hire him again, pay him for having his life ruined or do both. He’s innocent. You can’t undo what’s happened but you can make it right.

Mark Norman

As a longtime La Mesa resident I truly hope the city council does what is right, and backs its police! This has gone on long enough and is an embarrassment to the entire city with its lack of leadership. Stop bowing to the mob! Officer Dages has had enough trauma and torment and was found not guilty by a jury in court! Please council, end this chapter and allow us to move forward. Give Dages what he is owed and reinstate him or allow his family to move forward. Perri Storey has potentially cost tax payers millions of dollars for her unprofessional defaming comments made against Dages. If our voices our not heard now, they will be in the polls. Enough is enough.

Shante

For what it’s worth if anyone is even reading this, LET DAGES BE A LA MESA COP AGAIN! He shouldn’t have been fired, he shouldn’t have been charged, y’all distorted truth, lied to us, his life was ruined. So wrong

Bridget

I can’t believe what Officer Dages has gone through. Whatever this meeting is about do what’s right not what’s popular. Show us citizens you ain’t afraid of the looting vandals, they’re criminals. Hire him back!!!

Barbara Bright

As a citizen of La Mesa I am very concerned regarding the ongoing litigation of Officer Dages, the city has spent way to much already in our tax payer money. I strongly suggest you clean up this mess as I continue to see and hear Dages’ wife on local and national news media. I have a feeling the Dages’ will not stop seeking justice as he was cleared of any wrong doing in court last month. If the city council does not step in Dages will win his next battle in court against the city meaning a very large lawsuit for wrongful termination.

Jaime

I grew up here and I love & support our cops. I feel that Officer Dages did his job but because of public pressure he got fired. This was wrong. LMPD failed Officer Dages and look at what happened to him! His life destroyed. The city should hire him back & he should be paid millions.

Mikaela

Dear Mayor and City Council members, I am writing to you to express my concerns as a La Mesa resident about the potential re-enstatement of Matthew Dages. The actions of Dages in his interaction with Johnson exhibited an abuse of power and are deeply concerning. I am hopeful about the direction for our police department and community safety in La Mesa. Let us move forward with courage and confidence to ensure the safety of all residents and visitors to La Mesa. The re-enstatement of Dages would send a harmful message about what La Mesa’s values are and who is protected in our community.

Gina Vattuone

My comment on 3.1a is a request for you to not reinstate Matthew Dages. We need police officers who can de-escalate situations. La Mesa deserves better.

Patricia Green

Longtime La Mesa resident here, absolutely floored and disgusted by how you've butchered the Dages case for all to see. At this point, city council should issue a mia culpa to embrace accountability, offer transparency, and begin repairing the community relations La Mesa leaders have damaged.

lois

CLEAR DAGES FREE DAGES PAY DAGES APOLOGIZE TO DAGES

Stu B.

How much of our tax dollars have you all wasted launching your witch hunt against Officer Matt Dages? I'm tired of seeing our city in the news for the horrible reasons YOU ALL created. This man did his job, enacted an appropriate use of force, and you tried to burn him at the stake, dragging his name, credibility, and I'm sure SANITY, through the mud in the process. How awful are going to feel when you're forced to pay Dagesg millions for the damages youve wrongfully caused him? Or do you even care? WE LA MESA CITIZENS CARE. Stop painting our police in horrible untrue light and stand firmly for rule of law in our community. This misconduct will go down in history books as one of the most shameful things our city has ever done.

Deb Patt

I understand that for nearly two years you've led a slander campaign against Dages, who was recently exonerated by a jury of 12 San Diego citizens. I also understand that your motivation to do so has been fueled by your fear of mob retaliation and that La Mesa is the only thing standing in the way of Mr. Dages putting an end to this nightmarish ordeal he's wrongfully been forced to endure. As a tax paying citizen in La Mesa, I am shocked and disappointed by the city's meekness regarding 1) protecting our beautiful city with a precedent for law and order 2) standing up for our law enforcement officers and 3) holding your disaster city spokesperson, Perry Storey, accountable for her defamatory and inappropriate public comments about Dages' pending reinstatement. The way I see it: Dages' use of force was never an issue and now, he's been exonerated of any criminal wrongdoing by 12 East County residents, so your fear-fueled crusade against this young man needs to come to an end now. Here's why you're going to finally step up and do the right thing: failure to close this chapter with Dages will result in adverse legal consequences for the City of La Mesa which would only add to the hundreds of thousands of dollars you have already allowed to be wasted on this circus. La Mesa's conduct continues to be questionable at best and with this story gaining so much media attention lately...failure to close this chapter is going to wreak havoc on your elections this year. I personally will not stop speaking up now that your corruption has been exposed and I understand the group supporting Mr. Dages is growing at a very concerning rate for La Mesa. You need to empower all parties (Dages, his family, us La Mesa residents) to finally HEAL and move on. You've held Dages hostage for long enough and I'm vehemently ashamed of my city's behavior on many fronts...but especially that one. In closing, I'll leave you with this: The most recent media article I saw on your misconduct was from Breitbart (wow!), although it seems new media segments are coming out daily. The headline of the Brietbart article was that La Mesa forced Dages and his family to walk through the "fires of hell" over a false accusation. My warning to you is: fix this detestable mistake or risk hellish consequences of your own on La Mesa's upcoming elections, the city's image, public trust, future pd recruitment, and your individual consciences...if those are even still intact.

ariana fernandez

sick of watching you elected officials waste la mesa's tax dollars and REPUTATION slandering an innocent man, degas. as a woman of color I am so ahsamed how you gave in to demands of terrorists attacking our city, under the guise of social justice. you are a disgrace!! Give dages his life and credibility back. your charades need to end rightnow

Vickie White

Councilmembers, I’m a native of La Mesa and visit frequently to shop. I’m extremely concerned to see that an item involving ex-officer Matt Dages is on your closed session agenda. I fear that you are going to allow the legal system to scare you into rehiring Dages, inflicting him again on the Black and brown residents of La Mesa. He is unfit to serve the community as he has shown through his prejudiced actions. If you rehire him, you will also be exposing the City of La Mesa to legal liability.

Carlos desantos

Clear Dages, give this man his life back and let’s all begin moving forward from this colossal disaster city of la mesa created by being afraid of the mob

1. Matthew Dages, Petitioner v. Personnel Appeals Board of the City of La Mesa; City of La Mesa, Respondents

     Case No.: 37-2021-00009387-CU-WM-CTL

The following members of the public submitted a comment in support of Matthew Dages:

Walter P.

Thomas Paul

Elan

Julio

Francios

Esteban

Mariane

Sayed

Roger

Ximena

Jorge

Virginia Knop

Robert

Anthony

Paul J.

Serena

Cathy

Victor

Adelaide

Joran

Ana

Kevin

Charles

Monica

Anonymous

Carlos

Mark Norman

Shante

Bridget

Barbara Bright

Jaime

Lois

Stu B.

Deb Patt

Ariana Fernandez

Carlos Desantos

The following members of the public submitted a comment in opposition to Matthew Dages:

Cheri Robertson

Matthew Tupper

Brian Pedersen

Rev. Marcus C. Lohrmann

Rebecca Littlejohn

Mikaela

Gina Vattuone

Vickie White

Mark W. submitted a comment regarding the cost of the Matthew Dages litigation.

Patricia Green submitted a comment regarding the City's handling of the Matthew Dages case.

 

The meeting reconvened at 5:54 p.m. with all members present.

4.

REPORT FROM CLOSED SESSION - CITY ATTORNEY

City Attorney Sabine announced there were no reportable actions.

5.

ADJOURNMENT

Mayor Arapostathis adjourned the meeting at 5:54 p.m.