Opinion ID: 2461057
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Charge One Purchase of the Pickup Truck

Text: ¶ 13 Charge One, which alleges that Mayor Heiberg violated the law by purchasing a pickup truck for the city without calling for bids or obtaining the approval of the town council, is factually insufficient to justify a recall petition. As set forth above, where a recall petition is based on violation of the law, factual sufficiency requires a factual basis for the proposition that the elected official intended to violate the law. Such a factual basis is absent here. ¶ 14 Intent to violate the law may be inferred from the circumstances. The inference must not, however, be too conjectural. In re Recall of Ackerson, 143 Wash.2d 366, 373, 20 P.3d 930 (2001). In Sandhaus, specific warnings that additional spending would exceed the office budget in violation of state law were held to be sufficient to establish the requisite intent to violate the law. 134 Wash.2d at 665, 671, 953 P.2d 82. ¶ 15 At the time that Mayor Heiberg purchased the truck, he had only held the office for approximately eight months. In making the purchase, he relied on his understanding, albeit an incorrect understanding, that the entire $15,155.87 balance in the town's equipment reserve fund was available to purchase the truck. Further, upon discovering that his actions had been improper, Mayor Heiberg promptly set out to cure his error, first by seeking ratification by the town council and, failing that, by fully reimbursing the town. In light of these facts, the mayor's improper purchase of the truck bears all the hallmarks of a simple mistake, not an intent to violate the law. Though Pearce and Schwartz adduced evidence that Heiberg had attended a training program for elected officials prior to taking office in January 2010, the record contains no indication that the training included instruction on purchasing policies. Nor does his prior service on the town's planning board provide factual support for the charge that Mayor Heiberg intended to violate the law. ¶ 16 Because there is no factual basis for the charge that Mayor Heiberg intended to violate the law when he purchased the truck for the city, Charge One is factually insufficient to support the recall petition.