Jew resigns; Newsom cagey about replacement
Sup. Ed Jew, shown here at a previous court appearance, has been under pressure to resign since last May.
Photo by Charles Russo
Nearly eight months after FBI agents found $40,000 in allegedly extorted cash during raids on his home and office, Ed Jew has resigned from his District 4 seat on the Board of Supervisors, effective at noon tomorrow.
The negotiated deal – announced today by Jew attorney Stuart Hanlon and City Attorney Dennis Herrera – calls for the city to drop its official misconduct and quo warranto actions against Jew in exchange for his resignation, relinquishing any potential claims against the city, and pledging not to seek any public office for at least five years.
“I cannot continue to fight all the battles I’m now facing,” Jew said in a statement read by Hanlon, referring to the criminal prosecutions that are still active, including federal charges of extorting money from the Quickly tapioca stores that faced permitting problems and local charges of perjury and voter fraud for allegedly not living in San Francisco when he ran for supervisor, which was the basis for the city’s efforts to remove him.
Mayor Gavin Newsom suspended Jew in September, replacing him with interim Sup. Carmen Chu. But during a press availability following the announcement of the Jew deal, Newsom was cagey about whether the job now belonged to Chu: “I will be meeting with Supervisor Chu later this afternoon and tomorrow I’ll make my determination.”
Newsom praised Chu as thoughtful, deliberative, and engaged, and he said the Chinese-American community has already weighed in with strong support for Chu. “I do think it’s important that we have a Chinese representative on the Board of Supervisors,” Newsom said.
But he stopped short of saying that the job is Chu’s is she wants it, telling reporters, “If she decides to stay and I agree with that, she’ll have to go before voters in November,” as spelled out in the City Charter.
For her part, Chu told reporters that she was grateful to Newsom for the opportunity and she thanked her colleagues on the board and Dist. 4 constituents for their support. But when the panel of journalists pushed her on what she’ll do, she said only, “It’s certainly time to make that decision.”
Both Herrera and Newsom emphasized that it was past time for Jew to go during their respective press conferences (Newsom declined the invitation to join the main event and opted to hold her own an hour later). “I wish it happened months ago,” said Newsom, who resisted for four months calls to remove Jew, but defended his process by noting, “The city acted appropriately and deliberately and took this very seriously.”
Herrera struck a more conciliatory tone, telling reporters, “I think this is in the best interests of all parties that we move forward.” He praised the judgment and professionalism of Hanlon, who in October took over as Jew’s attorney, replacing often combative attorneys Steven Gruel and Bill Fazio, who seemed to goad Jew into resisting what had seemed to many an obvious fate.
“He is in many ways a very naïve man,” Hanlon, who initiated the settlement talks with the city a month ago, said of Jew. But Hanlon said it was clear to him that Jew had lost the public’s confidence and could no longer remain in office, telling reporters, “We went in a direction that seems obvious to me.”
“Mr. Jew is trying to resolve these issues and put this behind him,” Hanlon said, saying he was hopeful that a settlement could also be reached in the two outstanding criminal cases. “Cases go to trial when there’s no alternative.”
“I have reached this decision with a heavy heart,” Jew, who was not present, said in the statement that Hanlon read, adding that he wanted to spare taxpayers the cost of removing him, which Herrera said has been about $300,00 so far just in attorneys fees.
If Jew is convicted of a felony, his agreement with the city would extended the time he’s barred from office to 10 years, but Hanlon said that was a moot point, telling reporters, “He’ll never involve himself in elective politics again.”
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Update: Sup. Chu just called me to say that she had a good meeting with Newsom this afternoon -- "I think he is supportive" -- but that they're going to talk again in the morning before making a final decision. "I just want to sleep on it and think about it," Chu told me.
In addition to the Chinese-American community, women's groups have also called Chu and pledged their support, noting that there are only three women on the Board of Supervisors and Sup. Sophie Maxwell is in her last term. Chu isn't sharing much about her reservations or whatever pressures she might be feeling from Newsom, who she worked for before being appointed. But with more than a year's worth of incumbency before she would have to stand for election in the Sunset district, where the top four candidates finished in a tight pack in 2006, most political observers say this is a golden opportunity for Chu. Assuming, that is, that she wants to be a politician, something we'll probably learn tomorrow.
Posted by Steven T. Jones | January 10, 2008 05:55 PM