Small town hits rock bottom

Normally, the travails of one relatively small town in Southwest Washington would not warrant coverage on a state-wide blog. But Ridgefield, a growing community in northern Clark County, has fallen so far that maybe it will become an object lesson in what happens when powerful people are not held to the same standards as everyone else.

This fall, Ridgefield stood by its decision to fire city manager George Fox.

The Ridgefield City Council has affirmed its decision to fire George A. Fox as city manager, nearly a year after suspending him amid racism allegations and five months after an investigation into those charges resulted in his termination.

Council member Scott L. Hanson, with whom Fox had private business dealings while city manager, voted against the resolution firing Fox. Hanson, who could not be reached for a comment Friday, said he did not want to retain Fox but that the timing of the resolution was wrong, said Gaylynn Brien, Ridgefield's finance manager, who attended Thursday night's council meeting.

That whole thing was a mess and it wasn't handled quickly or well. It dragged on and at one point the FBI was supposedly looking into it. Not exactly the kind of attention the nice, conservative folks in northern Clark County tend to appreciate.

Then Hanson, the city council member, was arrested for DUI this week. From The Columbian:

Police arrested Ridgefield Councilman Scott Hanson Thursday on suspicion of driving under the influence and hit-and-run driving, after he allegedly fled the scene of a collision he caused on Interstate 5.

According to the Washington State Patrol, Hanson, 46, tried to drive his white pickup truck between two other vehicles in I-5’s northbound lanes near Carty Road late Thursday afternoon. Hanson’s truck crashed into a guardrail and lost its right front wheel before continuing north on three. No one was injured.

A few moments later, Ridgefield police found Hanson and his heavily damaged truck at the Circle K gas station off of Exit 14. Police “smelled a strong odor of alcohol coming from Hanson” and found in his pocket a small metal tube and copper steel wool with burnt residue, equipment commonly used to smoke drugs like crack cocaine and meth.

Ok, nobody got hurt, but they could have. The guy tried to drive between cars. One of the other vehicles was a van belonging to the father of a disabled child, according to the article, so now presumably that family can't transport their daughter, at least until an insurance company ponies up or rents a suitable vehicle.

According to both yesterday's Columbian article and the following excerpt from The Reflector, an arch-conservative weekly in north Clark County, Hanson had been acting very strangely: (via Google cache; The Reflector pulls its stories down each week:)

Early in the meeting, council member Scott Hanson announced that he was ill. Hanson said he wanted to clear the air because rumors are flying about his health. He did not name his illness.

Other council members assured Hanson of their support.

During public testimonies, Lindsay Warren, an accountant at Ridgefield City Hall, said that as a citizen and employee, she “could remain silent no longer.”

Warren said council members swear an oath to make impartial decisions, but cannot do so when not in full control of their mental faculties. She said she was embarrassed and offended by Hanson’s behavior Nov. 8 when he took a walk with Fox during a city council executive session.

To Hanson, Warren said, “Please seek help for what ails you.”

Hanson said he wasn’t aware of what happened that morning because he had accidentally taken more medication than prescribed. “I got up to go to the bathroom, but instead went to the store with George,” he said.

Yikes. If you can't remember leaving a city council meeting, you shouldn't have been there in the first place.

Hanson has, apparently, tried to get help.

Hanson, a developer and businessman, has become increasingly controversial since joining the council in 2005.

In July 2005, he was spotted driving erratically along the Pioneer Street S curves east of town. A Ridgefield couple saw him and, fearing a drunken driver, notified police. Police waited four months until Election Day to forward the complaint to the city prosecutor, and Hanson ultimately pleaded guilty to second-degree negligent operation of a motor vehicle, an infraction. Hanson also had two drunken-driving arrests as a young man in Alaska.

After the 2005 incident, he underwent an inpatient substance abuse rehabilitation program, according to court records.

This stuff had been reported this past summer.

The week before appointed Ridgefield City Councilman Scott Hanson filed for election in July, he was spotted weaving and driving erratically just outside of town.

But police waited nearly four months, until Election Day, to tell prosecutors about the incident, ensuring that voters wouldn't find out until after the election.

Witnesses told police Hanson appeared drunk, and the city prosecutor agreed alcohol was a factor, according to a police report.

But police never saw him driving drunk, and he pleaded guilty in January to a driving infraction, less than a misdemeanor.

No city officials could explain why it took so long for charges to be filed for a simple traffic offense.

The public is tired of being held to one standard while elected officials and other powerful people are not held to the same standard. If this had been a day laborer framing houses, they wouldn't stand a chance of geting such a break. It would have been slam, clink, pay the man after he gives you a lecture. And good luck keeping your job, it's now illegal for you to drive anywhere.

And now comes word a Ridgefield council member is stepping down, and while he doesn't overtly suggest that he's fed up with Ridgefield government, the timing is interesting, to say the least. (While it's not clear from news reports, it seems likely Sessions announced his resignation before Hanson's little drive on I-5, as Hanson was arrested Thursday afternoon. So I'm not trying to suggest that Sessions is reacting to the arrest of Hanson, we don't know that.) Nonetheless a notable development:

Chad Sessions, a member of the Ridgefield City Council for less than a year, announced his resignation Thursday saying he grossly underestimated the amount of time needed to do the job.

“I feel that my time and energies are best served focusing on my family and occupation,” he said in a letter presented to the council Thursday night. “I will of course stay involved in the Ridgefield community and give ongoing support as a proud Ridgefield citizen.”

Really, who could blame Sessions? Ridgefield is a complete wreck. And Sessions wouldn't be the first elected official who found that the job was eating up all of his family time, that's very common, so I certainly don't question that.

You hear a lot of informal comments in Clark County about how Ridgefield is "a good old boys (and gals) club." If that's the case, the "good old boys" have messed things up pretty badly. But then there's a lot of that going around in the world right now.

Rock bottom indeed.

Note- I have deliberately chosen not to post about Hanson's past partisan political donations, which are substantial, as which party he favors is not really the point. This is a tragedy for the victims of the wreck and now the community of Ridgefield. And for that matter the Hansons. Here's hoping the guy gets some help, and the citizens of Ridgefield can find some leaders who will serve them well.