Avondale residents call for reprimand or resignation of Councilmember Jeanette Garcia after social media post

Dozens of residents urged Avondale’s City Council on March 24, 2025, to hold Councilmember Jeanette Garcia accountable for a social media post they said targeted individuals and exposed community members to threats.

Speakers recounted personal impacts and demanded formal discipline or resignation. "If anything happens to me or my family, this person is the first person to look for," said Natasha Edmonds, identifying herself as West Valley NAACP chair for the Economic and Development Committee, describing threats and cybersecurity steps she said followed a post she attributed to Garcia. Robin Velasquez, a fourth-generation Avondale resident, asked the council to "reprimand and or censure" Garcia, saying the post and subsequent denials showed a pattern of avoiding responsibility. Multiple other speakers, including Veronica Malone and Linda Yeager, cited the city’s Council Code of Conduct and asked the council to enforce it.

The comments spanned dozens of speakers and written statements read into the record. Several speakers criticized what they described as attempts to minimize or recharacterize the post (one speaker quoted the social-media phrase and respondents’ later explanations), and at least one speaker said the post had produced direct threats that forced them to alter family routines and hire cybersecurity support.

Mayor Mike Pineda reminded speakers that council members do not normally respond from the dais during public comment and noted an executive session scheduled the following evening that the mayor said would address matters "of the nature surrounding what several of you are here to speak about tonight." Several council members later spoke briefly in open session and said they would follow procedural steps; no formal discipline, motion, or vote occurred during the March 24 meeting.

City staff declined to estimate, during the meeting, the total city cost in staff time or meetings related to the controversy, saying a reliable figure would require additional analysis.

Why this matters: Residents framed the issue as both an ethics and public-safety concern — saying words by elected officials carry extra weight and, in these instances, led to threats and fear. The city’s next meeting includes an executive session on the topic; any formal discipline or censure would require council action consistent with the City’s code of conduct and applicable process.

Ending: The council did not act on the matter March 24; the mayor notified the public of an executive session the next day on related matters. The record of public comments and dozens of written submissions will remain part of the packet and public record.