Almost eight months earlier than they lock horns within the June main election, a challenger for the San Jose Metropolis Council District 7 seat has filed the primary of doubtless a number of complaints towards Councilmember Bien Doan and his chief of workers, Jonathan Fleming — accusing them of abuse of energy, misusing metropolis sources and making false allegations — within the newest authorized salvo towards the incumbent.
After submitting a civil grand jury criticism Monday, Van Le, an East Facet Union Excessive Faculty District trustee who unsuccessfully ran towards Doan within the 2022 election however has determined to run once more, introduced her intent to file a defamation swimsuit. She stated Doan and Fleming humiliated her by circulating false accusations that Le used college district sources to profit herself and her members of the family, and used the annual Youngsters’s Moon Competition “to reward political allies and publicly shame political adversaries.”
“Our community deserves a leader who respects us, not retaliates against us,” Le stated. “We are calling for a public apology from Councilmember Bien Doan and his chief of staff, Jonathan Fleming, an end to political retaliation, and for city reform to ensure whistleblower complaints are handled properly — not misused, weaponized, or abused for political gain. Councilmember and staff time must serve the people of District 7, not be used as power or to waste taxpayer resources.”
“Our actions relayed a community member’s complaint and concerns in good faith and we are confident justice will prevail,” Doan’s workplace stated.
Amongst them have been accusations that Le used public sources to assault her rivals, together with on college property, pressured workers to supply “additional time and access to district facilities without property registration and payment” and “manipulated speaking and stage time to favor political friends while marginalizing or denying others” on the Youngsters’s Moon Competition, a significant vacation occasion in Vietnamese and Chinese language cultures that has been used to lift cash for homeless college students.
Fleming later relayed the identical remarks on the request of Doan through the public remark portion of a faculty board assembly.
Nevertheless, outdoors counsel for the varsity district didn’t substantiate the claims and famous that the district’s inner auditor, who displays its tipline and investigates misuse of public funds, had by no means acquired any complaints or allegations of misconduct about Le.
Tuyen Phan, the occasion coordinator of the Youngsters’s Moon Competition, additionally demanded an apology from Doan and Fleming, to no avail, and threatened authorized motion, saying the pair “deliberately fabricated these claims in a calculated attempt to harass, discredit and publicly shame me.”
Le’s case towards Doan marks the third lively criticism towards the councilmember, who faces two different claims of defamation.
In February, Vietnamese-American businessman Hai Huynh filed a lawsuit towards Doan for characterizing him as dishonest and a prison.
Doan had filed for a restraining order, alleging he had acquired threats from Huynh, who was a recognized critic of Doan’s relationship with David Duong. The CEO of California Waste Options, Duong was later indicted on bribery prices.
Throughout court docket proceedings the place a decide finally denied the restraining order, Santa Clara County Supervisor Betty Duong (no relation to David Duong) testified that “Mr. Doan had told me that Hai Huynh was a bad guy and that he was a convicted felon and that I should be careful.”
Extra not too long ago, Ha Trieu, president of the chief board of the Vietnamese American Neighborhood of Northern California, filed a defamation swimsuit towards a bunch of people — together with Doan — after he was accused of unethical and corrupt practices, together with laundering cash, misusing public funds, orchestrating political campaigns towards Doan and destroying the group.
That they had beforehand sparred verbally, together with final yr when Trieu accused Doan of abuse of energy for adjustments made to the flag-raising ceremonies and entry to the Viet Heritage Backyard. Doan’s workplace countered by claiming Trieu made threats towards one its workers members, which he known as “demonstrably false.”
On Tuesday, Trieu and Huynh voiced their help for Le as they as soon as once more condemned Doan’s actions.
“The school district has since confirmed these allegations to be untrue,” Trieu stated. “Yet, to this day, there has been no public correction or official apology. Councilmember Doan accused Mrs. Van Le and used these false allegations as a weapon for his own political interest, while in truth, it is he who misused his authority. Our only hope is that elected officials demonstrate accountability and responsibility.”
Doan’s dustup with Le can also be not the one battle he has had with a possible political opponent.
In April, Doan demanded the termination of Hanh-Giao Nguyen, a workers member in District 5 Councilmember Peter Ortiz’s workplace, after he alleged that she disrupted a Metropolis Council proclamation honoring Vietnamese People. Nguyen has since filed paperwork to run for the District 7 council seat.
Le stated at this level an apology wouldn’t suffice to cease the authorized actions, claiming that every one the lively instances display the identical sample and follow of abuse.
“He has done the (same) pattern of making accusations for a temporary restraint order to Mr. Huynh and he also divided the community (and) really, really smeared the people who have spoken against him, as well as his staff,” Le stated. “So as a taxpayer, and I’m also a District 7 resident, I want to stand up, not just wholly for myself, but for the next generation. For everyone who pays tax in the City of San Jose, we will have a voice (as) we stand up for that accountability and fairness.”
