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Council votes to defer action on recommended Integrity Commissioner sanctions

Decision likely won't be made until late October
Patrie 1
File photo of Mayor Dan Marchisella and Councillor Chris Patrie. Kris Svela for ElliotLakeToday

Elliot Lake Council made a decision Monday night to do nothing, at least not now. After an intense two hours of debate that saw both Councillor Chris Patrie and Mayor Dan Marchisella stand at the Council Chamber podium to plead their cases, council passed a motion to defer any action against Patrie, likely for two more regular meetings, until near the end of October.

Even though an E4M (Expertise for Municipalities) full report summary has been available to them for weeks, council members decided to wait and see some four outstanding final reports from E4M before making a decision on its recommended sanctions.

There was an emergency meeting held before Elliot Lake City Council's regular Monday night meeting to correct an oversight. When council voted to employ a new Integrity Commissioner, Cunningham Swan of Kingston earlier this year, they were one step short of making that appointment official. They were also one step short of making E4M the Integrity Commissioner for the city in the first place, for the critical period from Feb. 11 until June 10. The emergency special meeting corrected that oversight when council voted 4-3  for the bylaw that made it official.

In closed session, council received a letter containing advice from the Toronto Law Firm Aird, Berlis LLP.  If the vote had failed, the city might have had to start over again with the investigation of some 102 separate complaints that were filed to E4M and investigated by them in the period of March 5 and May 14 this year.

Seventy-one per cent of the complaints under the city's Code of Conduct and the regulations covered by the Ontario Conflict of Interest Act (OCOIA) were filed by Elliot Lake politicians.

Without the bylaw, the city would likely have had to start over again with another Integrity Commissioner and potentially re-investigate everything. No final bill has been received from E4M, but charges through the end July were up to $56,000. E4M is still filing reports, something that Councillor Chris Patrie used in defence of his own position several times.

Monday night he apologized only for sharing confidential information, not for other complaints against him that were substantiated by E4M. He said he was pursuing other remedies to clear his name, possibly including an approach to the provincial Ombudsman's office and the pursuit of a judicial inquiry. He also said the city should demand repayment of E4M's fees and have no further dealings with the Sault Ste. Marie firm.

Patrie was found guilty of a number of complaints and the E4M overview report which concluded he should be asked to resign from Council and be removed as a member of all city committees and boards he sits on. The report, authored by E4mMs Peggy Young-Lovelace, also recommended that Patrie forfeit up to eight month's pay.

Mayor Marchisella apologized to city staff, his fellow members of the Elliot Lake Royal Canadian Legion and the people of the city, for his misdemeanours.

It was an emotional speech, especially his comments regarding criticism he received from one member at the Elliot Lake Royal Canadian Legion branch. Without naming her, he was referring to a speech he made defending himself from critical remarks about him by former fellow Councillor Tammy Van Roon, now a city commissioner.

The majority of councillors said they would not support docking a councillor's pay, or that of the cayor, and Mayor Marchisella said that council does not have the statutory authority to ask for Councillor Patrie's resignation. He said the voters make those decisions in municipal elections.

Regarding Van Roon and the E4M recommendation that a copy of their report be forwarded to the Real Estate Council of Ontario, council also decided on a deferral. Councillor Tom Turner, the only member of council not accused of anything in complaints to E4M, said it wouldn't be fair to do something that might affect her livelihood as a real estate agent.

Councillor Luc Cyr, who was previously cleared by E4M in a Conflict of Interest complaint filed by Councillor Patrie, said, "Council should not be policing themselves because they'll sweep it under the rug, and that's what's happening tonight."  He said it wasn't fair to the taxpayers who paid for the E4M report.

That E4M report is available on the City of Elliot Lake website.



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About the Author: Brent Sleightholm

As a reporter, Brent has covered everything from amateur and professional sports, to politics, entertainment, police and courts, to human interest stories and government issues
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