The Coalition of Loudoun Towns (COLT), a group of Mayors established to advocate for the 7 towns in western Loudoun County, has suspended the Mayor of Purcellville Christopher Bertaut.
“This suspension arises from the ethically questionable practices resulting in multiple violations of Virginia state law, including breaches of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), conflict of interest statutes, open meeting law, public meetings, and voting requirement. Accountability, integrity, transparency, and compliance with the law are cornerstones of public service. Mayor Bertaut’s conduct in recent months has not lived up to these legal and ethical standards,”
The Mayor’s lengthy response can be read here.
The above link includes the background of squabbles and firings that have arisen in Purcellville Town Council which include the elimination of Purcellville police department and the hiring of former Mayor Kwasi Fraser as the full-time town manager. The former town manager was fired and Fraser was was hired without any other candidates given the opportunity to be interviewed. The Mayor has also excluded 3 members of the town council in various discussions and decisions.
The Mayor’s comments on abolishing the police department addressing the people of the town who are concerned about public safety:
“I don’t believe that to be the case,” Bertaut said. “We already have significant coverage from the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office here in town. That happens overnight between 1 and 6 a.m., when we have no coverage whatsoever due to manpower issues. Part of the transition process will be identifying key areas where they need to do additional patrolling where they don’t already do today.”
He also pointed out that this would save the town $3.4 million in taxpayer money, or about $381 per Purcellville resident.
Mayor Bertaut urged residents to look at larger “cities” in Loudoun County like Sterling and Ashburn that do not have their own police departments; they rely on the Sheriff’s department for police coverage. However, the Mayor misspoke when he referred to those two areas of Loudoun county as “cities”. Because Sterling and Ashburn are not cities or towns they cannot establish their own police departments.
