A hearing has been scheduled for a Fond du Lac city councilmember’s request to reverse an Ethics Board ruling that he violated a section of the Ethics Code. The hearing was scheduled for November 19 following a scheduling conference via Zoom Thursday afternoon. Councilmember Ben Giles claims that his constitutional right to due process was violated because he did not receive any advance notice of an Ethics Board hearing in February that he could be found in violation of the Code for consulting outside counsel, and that the violation was not set forth in either complaint against him. The city’s Ethics Board said Giles violated the Dedicated Service section of the Ethics Code when he sought outside counsel after the city attorney advised him not to participate in council debates and votes concerning the Lakeside Park Master plan placing the city at potential risk for liability. Giles’ petition says the Board’s decision was arbitrary, oppressive and unreasonable.
