West sorry but staying

Spokane Mayor Jim West gave no indication Thursday he is ready to relinquish the power of his office even as allegations of his sexual misconduct gripped City Hall.

“I have 1,150 days left in my term of office and each and every one of those days will be dedicated to serving the city and making sure we prosper…” the mayor said in a one-minute statement to the news media just before lunchtime.

In a separate e-mail to all city employees, the mayor wrote, “I want to sincerely apologize to you personally for the shame I have brought to the mayor’s office and the city and the embarrassment my lack of judgment may cause you.”

The mayor denied allegations by two men who claim that West molested them when they were boys while he was a Boy Scout leader and a Spokane County deputy sheriff in the 1970s. He characterized them in his statement as “two convicted felons.” Their allegations were contained in an investigative report in The Spokesman-Review on Thursday. The mayor pointed out that the molestations were alleged to have occurred 24 years ago.

West said he did not deny additional reports in the newspaper “that I have visited a gay chat line on the Internet and had relationships with adult men.”

In the e-mail to employees, the mayor said, “I have always considered a person’s private life private and have respected others in this way. I intend to keep my private life private.”

The mayor closed his e-mail memo to employees by asking them to pray for him and to remember that the primary job of all city workers is to “provide the best possible service to our citizens.”

Reaction to the sexual misconduct allegations was quick and intense. Outside of City Hall, a North Side pastor kept up a one-man demonstration against sexual promiscuity. A National Day of Prayer and Remembrance observance in the lower-level Council Chambers failed to draw an appearance by West, even though it was reportedly on his schedule.

West did, however, attend a Thursday evening service to remember the Holocaust. He briefly apologized to those gathered at Spokane’s Temple Beth Shalom – leaving unsaid what the apology was for – thanked them for allowing him to speak, then read a city proclamation.

Councilman Bob Apple said Thursday that he had heard rumors about West’s private life for 30 years.

“I’m just surprised and shocked this sort of thing has come out now,” Apple said.

Councilwoman Cherie Rodgers called for the mayor to “resign and step down. These are very serious allegations.”

Rodgers, Apple and Councilman Joe Shogan all said they were concerned about additional allegations that the mayor had used a city computer and had offered an internship during his personal chat activity, something Rodgers called “a complete lack of good judgment.” The internship offer was made to a computer expert hired by The Spokesman-Review to pose as a teenager. The expert was asked to verify claims that West was using aliases online to meet young men.

Shogan described the news coverage as “spectacular to say the least.”

Councilman Al French said, “At this point all it is is allegations.” French said he would continue to do his job as a city council member. “This isn’t an issue that is in our purview,” he said.

“Allegations can be made by anybody. I still think we are innocent until proven guilty despite what might appear in the paper or the electronic media,” French said, and he added that the mayor “has done a good job.”

“At this point, in my opinion, this isn’t an issue for the City Council and until it becomes that I am not going to speculate or engage in character assassination or anything else that might be attributed to these allegations,” French said.

French also said he is curious why the newspaper put so much work into uncovering the allegations.

Typical of his 16 months in office at City Hall, West got up early for a meeting – on Thursday, it was with city labor leaders – and then met with his top executives, whom he calls his “cabinet.” They include the chiefs of police and fire, the city attorney, chief financial officer and others.

The mayor reportedly spent about 10 to 15 minutes at the start of the regular 8 a.m. meeting talking about the personal allegations contained in the investigative report in the newspaper.

“I think the mayor was very open with the cabinet this morning, and then we had a regular cabinet meeting and talked about what’s going on with the city,” said Marlene Feist, public affairs officer for the city.

West talked with his top executives about proposed developments downtown and along the North Bank of the Spokane River and received a report that four tons of trash was swept up by street crews following Bloomsday, Feist said.

City employees reacted cautiously.

“I’m just hurting for him,” said one City Hall staff person who asked not to be identified.

One top administration official said the mayor seemed to have kept his focus on his job Thursday despite the allegations.

Councilman Brad Stark said he was “shocked and dismayed” but that he and other officials will continue to work on city business. “I, like everyone else, hopefully, will be praying for him and our city as we move forward,” Stark said.

Telephone messages and e-mails poured in to City Hall. “This is huge,” Rodgers said. “People are flabbergasted.”

An e-mail by one south side resident said this: “I do not want Jim West representing me on any level. He is an embarrassment to all residents of Spokane. I request our City Council to explore all avenues at their disposal to remove this man from office.”