Ouray County commissioners censure Lynn Padgett over unauthorized executive-session recording

The Ouray County Board of County Commissioners voted March 31 to publicly censure Commissioner Lynn Padgett after she admitted to recording a March 24 executive session on a personal device, a practice the board said violated county policy and risked disclosure of privileged attorney–client communications.

The resolution, proposed by Commissioner Michelle Nauer and seconded by the presiding commissioner, states that Padgett surreptitiously recorded the executive session and that an audible artificial-intelligence voice response from Padgett’s phone referenced the confidential legal matter under discussion. “The board hereby issues a public censure against Commissioner Lynn Padgett for conduct that violated the public trust and her fiduciary duty,” the resolution reads, citing county policy sections and Colorado law that govern executive sessions.

Nauer told the board she was “appalled” by Padgett’s conduct and described staff and fellow officials as shaken by the incident. “It is a violation of trust. It is a violation of policy,” Nauer said during the special meeting. Padgett acknowledged she had recorded the session and apologized, saying the recording was a one‑off attempt to accommodate debilitating long‑COVID and mold‑related symptoms that impaired her ability to follow oral briefings. “I apologize for breaking a rule. I own that,” Padgett said.

Outside counsel Chris McAnany advised the board the resolution should focus narrowly on the unauthorized recording and the board’s remedial authority, while other suggested measures (such as permanent bans from meetings) may require separate notice and deliberation. The proposed text cited Colorado Revised Statutes on executive-session authority and attorney–client privilege and referenced specific county technology and personnel policy provisions.

Commissioner Nauer moved to approve what was referred to during the meeting as Resolution 26. In a roll-call vote the board recorded two votes in favor and one opposed; Commissioner Padgett voted no. The board directed the county manager to number and circulate the signed resolution.

The censure is a formal statement of disapproval and a direction to stop the listed behavior; it does not itself remove an elected official from office. The board also discussed, and later authorized, additional administrative steps to limit the risk of future unauthorized recordings and to preserve privileged communications.