Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Conduct topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commissioner publicly accuses a commenter of historic sexual harassment during Lane County meeting; speaker made on‑record statement
Summary
During April 7 public comment, a resident criticized staff and a commissioner responded, publicly alleging the commenter sexually harassed her decades earlier while she worked for his company. The commissioner said she felt compelled to correct the record; the exchange occurred during the board's response to public comment.
A tense exchange occurred on the record at the Lane County Board of Commissioners meeting April 7 after public comment from Ruben Garcia. A commissioner requested the floor to respond to Mr. Garcia’s remarks and said she had previously not publicly described an incident in which she said Mr. Garcia sexually harassed her while she worked for his company about 30 years earlier.
Speaking from the dais, the commissioner said she had never publicly identified the matter before and characterized the interaction in the county building lobby as the commenter’s presumption that he had permission to touch her. She said she could not let the public remark stand unchallenged and framed the response as a broader statement about how women are treated when they decline unwelcome physical contact.
The board allowed the statement; the matter was presented as the commissioner’s personal account and was not litigated during the meeting. Members of the board and the public in attendance heard the exchange on the record. No formal investigation or criminal allegation was filed during the meeting; the exchange was an on‑the‑record response to comments made during the public comment period.
