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Public and council spar over proposed updates to code of conduct after social-media flap
Summary
Councilmember Harris proposed redlines to Merced's council code of conduct to add complaint and censure procedures. The item drew extended public comment, with speakers both accusing the council of weaponizing process against dissent and urging clearer procedures and due process. Council directed Harris to refine the proposal in the ethics and governance subcommittee.
Councilmember Harris brought forward a redlined update to the council code of conduct on Nov. 17 that would add procedures for complaints against council members and a formal mechanism for admonishment, warnings and censure. The proposal was prompted in part by recent social-media controversy referenced by several speakers during the meeting.
Public comment filled the chambers and the docket: some speakers argued the changes are necessary to provide a predictable, documented process for serious breaches and to prevent chaotic "censure hearings" without a structured procedure. Others said the proposed wording could be used to chill protected speech or to politically punish minority viewpoints.
Daniel, who addressed the council during public comment, called the effort a form of "political retaliation" and warned against using the code as a tool to silence the council's only member of color. Several other speakers, including Chrissy Gallardo and others, urged the council not to allow the policy to become a vehicle for public shaming or for disproportionate power being exercised through the mayor's office or city attorney.
Council members acknowledged the tension between ensuring accountability and protecting free speech. Several members said the city already has an ethics ordinance but lacks clear censure hearing procedures; others said the redline needed precise definitions (for example, what constitutes a formal "complaint") and safeguards against weaponization. Council directed Councilmember Harris to revise the redline and return the draft to the ethics and governance subcommittee for further work.
Mayor Serrato and other members said they had no present intention to pursue censure against any member based on speech alone and emphasized the goal of designing a procedure that balances due process and transparency.
The council took no final action beyond the direction to the subcommittee.
