Newly sworn in Upland city council member Debbie Stone takes her seat for the first time as Upland mayor Ray Musser looks on Monday evening September 26, 2011 in Upland. (Will Lester/Staff Photographer)
By Sandra Emerson Staff Writer
Created: 09/27/2011 01:58:38 PM PDT
UPLAND – The city has two new top officials who aim to help the city move past recent allegations of corruption stemming out of the city.
Debbie Stone was sworn in as councilwoman and Jeff Mendenhall was sworn in as police chief at council meetings on Monday.
“It was awesome,” Stone said. “It was really a whole different perspective sitting up there and looking out there and listening to the citizens speak and their concerns.”
The funeral director for Stone Funeral Home in Upland was elected to the council in August during a special all-mail election to fill a vacancy left by Ray Musser. He was appointed mayor in February.
Last week, City Manager Stephen Dunn appointed Mendenhall, who was previously a captain in the Police Department, after former police Chief Steve Adams left on medical retirement.
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Adios chief adams! The self-appointed mayor musser needs to be next to go come November 2012.
@Upland 911 – No, the Fire Chief needs to go now!
Very good start Debbie Stone. Maybe she will be able to clean up Upland!
David Allen Column:
“As for Fire Chief Mike Antonucci, he’s retiring Friday, to keep the lifetime medical benefits that Dunn is eliminating as of the next day, but he was given a contract to continue running the department for up to six months.
A new chief will be sought during that period. Stone didn’t say anything, but the vote to approve the contract was 4-1, with her in opposition – which raised eyebrows on the dais and in the audience.
Afterward, Stone said she didn’t see the necessity to keep Antonucci on. Willis joined the conversation and asked her why she voted no.
“Times are changing,” Stone replied simply.
To return to the dinosaur analogy, her vote, and her explanation, may have been the petite Stone’s version of a mighty roar.”
The only councilmember to do the right thing! GO GET EM DEBBIE!
Found on an earlier post. Can anyone confirm? @Chosen one – need details! Is Med-Trans Corp v California City and Michael Antonucci separate from what you are talking about?
12. Chosen one on September 27th, 2011 8:19 pm
Fire Chief is convicted felon for insurance fraud. What say you Honorable Ray Musser and Tom Thomas?
13. Someone Who Really Wants to Know on September 27th, 2011 9:15 pm
@Chosen one – Is your last statement true? Do you have any details?Where can I get information?
14. Someone Who Really Wants to Know on September 28th, 2011 7:02 am
@chosen one – Does the Med-Trans Corp v California City and Michael Antonucci lawsuit against him and California City = Fraud? Is this what you are implying? Can be found at: caselaw.findlaw.com
F050519
15. FedUp on September 28th, 2011 7:14 am
Thanks SWRWtK, Found it. Doesn’t look to good for the Fire Chief.
“According to MTC’s original complaint, on January 7, 2002, MTC entered into a contract with City in which MTC agreed to provide air ambulance services for a specified fee. A basic purpose of the contract was to facilitate continuous helicopter ambulance service for patients within the general region of City. Prior to entering into the agreement, false representations were allegedly made to MTC by City’s fire chief, Michael Antonucci (Chief Antonucci), regarding the estimated number of times that air ambulance services would be utilized per year (call volumes). MTC allegedly relied on these representations as to call volumes when it decided to enter into the contract with City. The complaint further alleged that City breached the contract by, among other things, failing to timely provide necessary licenses and permits required to operate the air ambulance services in Kern County fn. 1 and a failure to provide adequate infrastructure to dispatch calls. Under these facts, the original complaint included causes of action for fraud and breach of contract. Later, a Fourth Amended Complaint provided greater specificity regarding the misrepresentations as to call volumes that were allegedly made by Chief Antonucci.”
Just a little bit more that I missed the first time concerning Med-Trans Corp v California City and Michael Antonucci:
“On February 10, 2006, MTC sought leave to file a Fifth Amended Complaint. The purpose of the amendment was to add a new cause of action entitled “Fraud in the Inducement – Intentional Misrepresentation re: Permit.” The proposed new cause of action was based, in part, on the premise that in a prior meeting with MTC’s representative, Attorney Anton, City had been informed of the difficulty of obtaining ambulance permits in Kern County. Specifically, the Fifth Amended Complaint alleged, “[n]either City nor [Chief] Antonucci relayed to MTC, during any point of the contract negotiations … that City and its representative, [Chief] Antonucci [,] before November 2001, met with representatives of the [Golden Empire] in the Federal Court case and discussed the pitfalls and hazards the City would face from the County of Kern … if it pursued a permit to operate any ambulance or provide paramedic services to its citizens.”
“We conclude as a matter of law that City failed to establish that confidential information was imparted in the prior meeting. First, according to Chief Antonucci’s declaration, aside from a discussion of the federal lawsuit against Kern County relating to its alleged improper permit practices, the only relevant information shared at the meeting was City’s plan to hire MTC and apply for an ambulance permit. Whether or not this fact was generally known [156 Cal.App.4th 669] at the time of the meeting, on the record before us there is no reason to infer that City’s objective to hire an ambulance company and seek a permit would be considered a confidential matter. Second, the circumstances of the meeting confirm a lack of confidentiality.”
@FedUp – End result, proven in court (Med-Trans Corp v California City and Michael Antonucci) of false representations and causes of action for fraud and breach of contract! Good find.
I heard some disturbing information on the Air Ambulance contract at the last Council meeting. I had heard that the City (Antonucci) is negotiating for a new Air Ambulance services contract. Does anyone know why? The City’s stance has always been that the Fire Helicopter makes the city money. Why a new contract then? From what I know this is the exact same thing that happened to California City during his departure time from there. And it really messed up California City! Doesn’t any of the city leaders look into this stuff? They need to!
@ FedUp- The only reason Debby voted NO on Monday was that Bob Cable told her to. Debbie has no clue what is going on in the Fire Department and thinks that Cables wife should get the job and didn’t understand why she was not qualified. Give her a few months, she will show just how ineffective this current council is.
Why is it that Antonucci has been proven to lie over and over again, but yet the city council and city manager still takes his word and advise? And gives him a contract for Fire Chief to continue?
From above: false representations and causes of action for fraud and breach of contract – this found to have been committed by Antonucci in a legal proceeding!
Now what about these:
1. Dangerous and negligent misuse of the Upland Ladder Truck – The Public’s Safety put at extreme risk: Ladder truck – No other city runs just a Ladder truck with no fire pump as the single and sole resource for an initial fire response for an entire response district. This action by continuing this practice will be found as negligence when someone is hurt or killed.
2. Misappropriation of grant funding and CDBG funds – Type IV fire engine, all grant funding for the past 5 years
3. Gross misconduct concerning the Grove Theatre
4. Flagrant, blatant and serious mismanagement of personnel and programs – False and Cheated Promotions, best friends hiring system and wrongly/illegal terminations
This guy is a proven liar! But yet we have to take him at his word and advise for our protection. No we don’t!
Upland City Council and City Manager you can start correcting this deceipt and deception by immediatley correcting the most serious breach of public trust by this individual. Immediatley start utilizing a Fire Engine from fire station 164!
Dangerous and negligent misuse of the Upland Ladder Truck – The Public’s Safety put at extreme risk: Ladder truck – No other city runs just a Ladder truck with no fire pump as the single and sole resource for an initial fire response for an entire response district.
@my2cents – You got that one right Sir. Dunn actually saves the City $$ and keeps the troops satisfied by utilizing Anton vs Cable.
Ground control to FBI, you need to look into this….
Thanks FedUp, David Lutz and CityWorker for the find…
City Manager Dunn initially was going to wait until January to begin recruiting for a new fire chief, but, in order to cut down on costs, the council (Brandt and Filippi) asked that he move up the process. Mayor Barney (Musser) just wanted to push the vote button!
The Fire Union wasted no time, rapidly hammering Stone who favors chief Suzanne Cable for the top spot in corruptland.
“One thing wasn’t communicated (Monday) was the contract will actually save the city money, because, right now, the city pays just over $23,000 a month for him with compensation, retirement and benefits,” Dunn said. “It’s going to go to $15,000, so we’re saving over $8,000 a month going to this.”
FedUp; And again I ask you why you stole my handle ?
Hey Fed Up is it true that Cable is not qualified to serve as Fire Chief due to fact that she does not have graduate degree? Be honest.
Since when do you need a graduate degree?
My2Cents – Clearly you don’t know Debbie Stone. No one tells her what to do. Not even Bob Cable. She simply did what she said she we would do. Antonucci is double dipping plain and simple. There should be at least one if not more people in place that can run the department at least on an interim basis. If there isn’t then the Chief has not done his job.
Hey Chief Antonucci, how’s things going? The truth catching up to you? What goes around, comes around! Maybe if you didn’t lie about everything you would be a good Chief! But none the less, your lies are catching up to you, how does it feel to be caught in so many lies? What lies are you going to make up to get out of this one? By now the City sees threw you.
@My2Cents – Did you know our group put in an official complaint of misconduct against Antonucci and his fire inspector? Fraudulent misrepresentation! But yet the City ignores the facts and so far has continued business as usual. Same old Upland! But this time if they don’t do anything, it is going to bite them in the rear! Kind of like JP. Can you say DA and FBI if nothing is done by the City! They need to do something to get ahead of this. They no longer have plausible deniablity!
@My2Cents – It was not a list of demands. It is just required actions if you go by the policies and procedures already in place within the City of Upland. Cable is the only one qualified to step up to Chief. So it is just the natural progression of things that Cable would move to Fire Chief. Our group could really care less who the Fire Chief is, as long as he/she is honest and knows what they are doing. Antonucci has to go, that is what we have been advocating. We don’t really care who takes the Chief’s position as long as they are qualified, honest and does the right things for Upland.
@Mcnutjob – You are the problem not the solutuion. Just because we remain anonymous, does that make our complaints and the facts any less viable? The truth is the truth. How does the truth change because we wish to remain anonymous? Here is the thing, I personally like the “Honorable Ray Musser”, but he needs to pull his head out of the sand on this issue. Ray needs to quit playing politics and start doing what is best for Upland. This corruption that has been exposed about Antonucci and the fire inspector is very serious and needs to be dealt with, not ignored. You call it badgering, we call it illuminating! Now that the light has finally been turned on, all the cockroaches are trying to scurry back into the dark! Mcnutjob, become part of the solution not remain part of the problem! Denial, denial, denial, ignore, ignore, ignore! The Upland way! But as Debbie Stone said, “Things are changing” Here Upland try something new: Acknowledge, correct and press on. Integrity, integrity, integrity!