Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Comment Defamation Complaint topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident accuses superintendent of slander at board hearing, files formal complaint with HR
Summary
A community member told the board she was defamed by Superintendent Linda Delatorre during a special hearing and said she filed a formal complaint with Human Resources seeking discipline and public retraction; the board took the statement under public comment and did not take action at the meeting.
A San Marino resident accused Superintendent Linda Delatorre on March 25 of making false, slanderous statements about her personal life during a recent personnel hearing and said she has filed a formal complaint with district human resources.
Cassandra "Cassie" Zapaterino told the board she had been called as a witness on March 19 in a special hearing concerning a district employee, Leida Escamilla. Zapaterino said she later watched recordings of the hearing and learned, she said, that the superintendent had stated a local coach, Jeremy Cisneros, was Zapaterino’s "ex‑boyfriend" and claimed a sexual relationship. Zapaterino denied those statements, said she had met Cisneros twice (once in 2016 while volunteering and later at a booster event) and said she never had a romantic relationship with him.
Zapaterino said the superintendent’s alleged statements have damaged reputations, reached other district employees and community members via the hearing recording, and caused distress for her children and others. She said she filed a written complaint with the district’s human resources department and asked the board to discipline the superintendent, publicly retract the statements, and apologize to the parties she named. Zapaterino also requested protections against retaliation.
What the board did: Zapaterino presented the statement during the public comment period and said she had filed a complaint with HR. No board vote or action on a personnel or disciplinary matter was recorded at the March 25 meeting. Board policy on public comment and employee conduct was cited by the speaker but no formal Board response was made at the meeting.
Context and scope: Zapaterino said her allegations relate to testimony at a separate special hearing and to prior alleged community communications by the superintendent. She said she will provide the board with her written complaint and expects a district response.
Ending: Zapaterino requested the board take the complaint seriously, seek retraction and apology from the superintendent, and ensure no retaliation against her children or family. The board accepted the public comment; no disciplinary action was announced at the meeting.
