Councilor Jimmy Le has been out of action as a city councilor since he was accused of sexual harassment by his colleague, Councilor Stephanie Martins several months back.
Le has not attended a council meeting since being accused by Martins.
It appears likely Le will not be attending city council meetings anytime soon as the law is not a short dash type race.
Rather, the law moves at the pace of a long marathon.
Le, therefor, is a councilor without a council to attend.
This is a situation that cannot be allowed to go on without end. The city charter provides for a councilor who does not attend a certain number of hearings to be ousted from his or her elected position.
We doubt very much the council has the will or the stomach to pay close attention to the mandates of the city charter.
It rarely does.
Le deserves the quick resolution to Martin’s allegations of sexual harassment against him.
Martin’s also deserves to be heard and for the issue to be adjudicated.
Martin’s meltdown at last week’s council meeting following the statements of a public speaker that Le was quite probably set-up reveals the need to sort out the Le problem not just in court, but inside the council itself.
Martin’s has made allegations.
Le has been “suspended” from the council by a judge’s order that doesn’t allow him to be within a certain distance of the councilor.
This is a situation that must be resolved sooner, rather than later.
At risk are Martin’s rights. Also at risk are Le’s rights.