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Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Saint Paul Racketeering Lawsuits Deposition Of Andy Dawkins Continued

Please click onto the comments for the last of Andy's deposition.

posted by Bob at Wednesday, January 31, 2007

1 Comments:

Blogger Bob said...

Q What did you learn was the reason that there
8 would be an increase in abandonment if the code
9 enforcement went by -- or passed the tipping
10 scale point?
11 A All I know is that I read a study that was in a
12 journal about stepped up code enforcement in
13 Baltimore and that it had tipped the scales so
14 that there was more abandonment of properties
15 than the city had thought or wanted to have
16 happen.
17 Q Did you know whether or not that study also
18 talked about low income rental housing in an
19 effect of abandonment of those type of
20 properties as well through that stepped up code
21 enforcement^ CH PUNCT?
22 A No, I don't know that.
23 Q We were talking about the meeting that you had
24 with the PHA inspectors at the White Bear Avenue
25 office prior to our break for lunch. That
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1 Mr. Bowen.
2 Q Do you know what time frame that would have been
3 in?
4 A The late '80s through the late '90s, I think.
5 Q You don't believe that there was anyone using
6 that as a personal place of residence after
7 1999?
8 A I can't be sure of the year, but I don't think
9 that -- I know no one was using it as a
10 residence as of 2002. My guess was that it was
11 earlier than that. Maybe I have to say 2002 for
12 sure because that I know.
13 Q We saw earlier Lantry tour list. This was a
14 reference to Councilmember Lantry's tour of a
15 neighborhood. Do you recall receiving a copy of
16 that list of addresses?
17 A I do.
18 Q Do you know where that -- if that is in fact
19 still in existence?
20 A I believe it is. I think that it was again that
21 predecessor to Jean Piccolo -- who I wish I knew
22 his name. I can't think of it -- had in fact
23 typed up for the Lantry tour a list with a
24 paragraph or two description under each address
25 as to how long district council had been trying
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1 to get compliance and some satisfaction for
2 neighbors about having to endure for all the
3 dozen or 15 properties that were on that list.
4 Q Going back just one follow-up question before
5 lunch, we were talking about your property at
6 767 with the abandon vehicles. Did you say that
7 you paid for towing of those vehicles or you got
8 the neighbors to --
9 A I got the owners of those vehicles to remove
10 them from my property.
11 Q So you didn't have to pay for towing?
12 A That's right.
13 Q All right. Thank you. Are you familiar with
14 the protocol that was used by your inspectors
15 during 2002 to 2005 regarding condemnations of a
16 rental unit versus the entire building?
17 A No.
18 Q Never had any discussions with any property
19 owner regarding a condemnation of a unit versus
20 the entire structure that you can recall during
21 2002 to 2005?
22 A I think the conversation or two happened
23 somewhere about you can condemn the upstairs and
24 not the downstairs, or you can lift the
25 condemnation on one side of the duplex or not
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1 see that?
2 A Yes.
3 Q Right underneath that, can you read those
4 horizontal lines starting with AD?
5 A Andy Dawkins called Patrick Westhef^ SP,
6 Assistant Ramsey County Attorney, Jesus meeting
7 next, Andy read lease, and all Kathy Lantry blue
8 file.
9 Q What would that refer to?
10 A KL is Kathy Lantry.
11 A That's right.
12 Q And then blue file, what does that refer to?
13 A I must have had a blue file notes from her
14 because she came and told me lots of things
15 about how she wanted me to run the city.
16 Q Let me just ask you on this particular property
17 where it says Jesus. You've described here was
18 she having some input on any particular property
19 that you can see here?
20 A She had 12 to 15 properties on her list before I
21 even got hired that she came and said I want you
22 to go see on my first day on the job. Several
23 of these here are from that list, I believe.
24 Q That's what you're referring to when you call it
25 a blue file?
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1 A My blue file -- I don't have any recollection of
2 it other than it says here KL blue file. So I
3 must have had a blue file that I started from
4 Kathy Lantry meetings.
5 Q When you say that she came to you on more than
6 one occasion, describe that for me.
7 A The first day on the job, second hour, 10:00,
8 she's in my office saying I want you to go on a
9 tour with me to problem properties in my
10 district.
11 Q Is that the tour you referred to earlier?
12 A Then we arranged that tour to happen shortly
13 after that. But there were untold visits at her
14 office or her in my office for the next two
15 months while I worked that exhibit that's half
16 the table through everyone for their input on
17 how this department should be shaped under my
18 direction.
19 Q As part of that process and meetings with her,
20 she would share with you lists of problem
21 properties that she had in her possession.
22 Correct?
23 A She already had that list before I started. I
24 don't think she added to that list during those
25 months. It was simply that she wanted to
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1 know -- she was the one councilmember of the
2 seven that cared more about every word that I
3 was putting down in writing as the proposed way
4 to run the department.
5 Q Underneath that it says, need code. Is that
6 what it says there, where it says Jesus at
7 whatever next?
8 A Need code something. I can't read it either.
9 Q In the parenthesis what is that?
10 A Excess consumption for all his properties. See
11 list attached.
12 Q So where were you getting the information about
13 need code something excessive consumption for
14 all his properties, see list attached? Where
15 were you getting that information?
16 A Going along with the policy and the protocol
17 that had been developed prior to 910 East 6th
18 becoming problem property 0201, we had said that
19 once you make the problem property list, all
20 your properties in the city then are to be
21 treated in a way that would be trying to achieve
22 the mayor's objective of getting every problem
23 in the city called. You just can't be 24/7 on
24 the properties in the city. We had to figure
25 out some rational way -- and this was the way,
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1 that, okay, you're a landlord with a problem
2 property, the rest of the properties get the
3 treatment the mayor wanted to have for everybody
4 in the city.
5 Q Which was a hit with a criminal citation at the
6 first instance that a code enforcement officer
7 sees?
8 A Yeah. So excessive consumption meant get the
9 police department's -- that's what it is, and
10 cop. Need code and cop. That's what it says
11 there.
12 Q Where it says need code and & sign and COP?
13 A Right.
14 Q Get a list of all his properties. So a list how
15 would the --
16 A For all his properties, see list attached.
17 That's what I came in with a list of all the
18 Steinhauser owned properties in the city.
19 Q How do you obtain a list like that, Mr. Dawkins,
20 at the time that the September 1st, 2002
21 property report was being discussed?
22 A I think I went to Maynard and I said, Maynard,
23 give me the rental registration list for
24 Mr. Steinhauser.
25 Q It says here see list attached. That list would
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1 Q What does that say there next to that?
2 A Kathy Lantry says 959 still looks awful, plus
3 there is graffiti on the garage between the two
4 properties.
5 Q Between the two properties?
6 A Yes.
7 Q Can you see any other comments you made on the
8 this page here referring to Kathy Lantry?
9 A Let me take a minute.
10 Q Would you always use KL as a shorthand for her?
11 A I would. I don't see KL anywhere else.
12 Q Near the top under 910 6th Street, there's a
13 property 776 Seventh Street East?
14 A Yes.
15 Q Can you read what notes relate to that?
16 A Soon close, close at rational, landlord
17 cooperative with Fish.
18 Q Do you remember any discussion with Fish or any
19 of her assistance as to the level of cooperation
20 of the landlord whereby that property was going
21 to be taken off the problem property list?
22 A No recall.
23 Q If a property owner was cooperative with the
24 particular inspector, whether it was the fire
25 prevention or the NHPI inspector, was it a
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1 or not any of your code inspectors have ever
2 accompanied force units during raids of PHA
3 properties?
4 MS. SEEBA: You mean during 2002 to
5 2005?
6 MR. SHOEMAKER: Yes. Thanks,
7 Louise.
8 A Inspector Lippert was assigned prior to my
9 becoming a city employee to work with the city's
10 force unit, and I don't know more after that.
11 Q (Continuing by Mr. Shoemaker) Look underneath
12 the Bates properties there to the 987 Uclid and
13 959 Uclid. Is there a reference there to Kathy
14 Lantry?
15 A There is.
16 Q What does that say?
17 A Same thing. It says Kathy Lantry says still
18 awful.
19 Q So this would have been about what time that she
20 is conveying this information to you?
21 A Well, I reported back to her after every problem
22 property meeting and the progress we were making
23 on trying to deal with her problem properties
24 and I was getting input that these things
25 started to look better and she was giving me
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1 input back, no, they still look awful.
2 Q Who was giving you input that the properties
3 were starting to look better?
4 A Well, I'm guessing that that's why I put still
5 because we'd already been out there and code
6 enforcement was trying to do something about it.
7 And a month gone by and Lantry wasn't satisfied.
8 Q If a landlord had a property on the problem
9 properties list and agreed to evict a tenant
10 that had been subject of behavior complaints,
11 would that property then be taken off the
12 problem property list during the time you were
13 head of code enforcement?
14 A Not necessarily. But that could be part of the
15 reasons or all of the reasons depending upon the
16 circumstances.
17 Q Go to Bates 50143, Mr. Dawkins. It looks like
18 on the right-hand side about halfway down you
19 got HB, hear back, Harrington and date. Do you
20 see that in the bolder letters?
21 A You can see that there were a string of
22 properties on Edmond from 667 to -- for
23 properties 0238 through 0243. They were all on
24 the same block. The western district commander
25 now chief of police Harrington and Tate
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1 A From the old Andy Dawkins potential list that we
2 actually finally had some documentation
3 somewhere that I was right in saying to
4 everybody, make it a problem property, I'm
5 hearing from enough people that it's a problem.
6 Q So it made this list?
7 A This is whoever prepared this list it made their
8 list.
9 Q Do you have any idea who may have been the
10 source of the list?
11 A I don't know.
12 Q Go to the next page on 50147 at the top right.
13 It's got the name Tate. Correct?
14 A It does.
15 Q And then underneath that, what is it say?
16 A Hessler full list in Lantry tour.
17 Q Hessler full list. Would that be the same type
18 of list that was pulled on Mr. Steinhauser's
19 property where you had one property or more that
20 were problem properties and then the entire
21 portfolio of rental registration properties were
22 pulled?
23 A That's right.
24 Q DEL, what does that stand for, do you know,
25 above Tate?
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11:39 AM  

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