As on-duty San Jose firefighters last fall parked a fire truck, lights flashing, outside the Pink Poodle strip club, a woman in a bikini exited the vehicle.
Which is why last week we filed a lawsuit in Santa Clara County Superior Court demanding release of the records about the Pink Poodle fiasco. The city further claims that the documents are part of personnel files protected from disclosure. Never mind that longstanding case law in California makes clear that when wrongdoing by public employees is found the records must be disclosed.
And, perhaps most important, how severe was the discipline meted out by Sapien for what he described as clear violations of city and Fire Department policies? It was apparently far short of the “heads should roll” that Liccardo had demanded.