An ethics complaint filed by a Durango city councilor against a former advisory board member one year ago has resulted in a lawsuit, a counter complaint filed with the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission, and, so far, no final resolutions.
City Councilor Melissa Youssef filed a motion earlier this month to dismiss an ethics complaint against her with the IEC in September by Durango resident John Simpson.
The motion and a response from Simpson to the motion were on the Jan. 21 IEC meeting agenda.
Simpson said in his IEC complaint against Youssef that she violated state law and acted in her personal interest when she: 1) voted to extend the terms of Durango Board of Ethics members who were overseeing an ethics complaint she filed against Simpson; and 2) voted to hold an executive session about releasing initial screenings by the ethics board to Simpson at his request.
Youssef said in her motion for dismissal her votes were “in furtherance of the interests of” the city, or in other words, official acts.
The motion said Simpson has a “long history of false allegations against government officials” and his complaint did not demonstrate Youssef had a personal or private financial interest.
Simpson said in a response to the motion for dismissal that financial benefit is not necessary for an ethics violation to occur, and her own ethics complaint against Simpson to the Durango Board of Ethics “would likely be considered to be a frivolous complaint by the IEC.”
Although Simpson filed his complaint against Youssef, a Durango City Council member, in her personal capacity, the complaint is closely related to an ongoing feud between the city and Simpson.
Simpson is embroiled in an ethics complaint against himself filed by Youssef with the Durango Board of Ethics in January 2024. That complaint alleges he placed a personal vendetta with other city officials above the best interests of the city while violating various state open record and antidiscrimination laws by concealing conversations with another councilor and making unfounded and racist allegations against other city officials.
Things escalated when Simpson threatened to sue ethics board members personally if they ruled against him in the case; that led to City Attorney Mark Morgan filing the city’s own lawsuit against Simpson in September.
“His best defense is an aggressive, bullying offense against people who are trying to do their jobs,” Morgan said of Simpson at the time.
The same argument appears in Youssef’s motion to dismiss Simpson’s IEC complaint against her.
Morgan is representing Youssef in the case. City Council voted to allow Morgan to represent Youssef in her personal capacity in December on the basis Youssef took official action under Morgan’s advice when she voted to extend the terms of ethics board members.
cburney@durangoherald.com