The three outgoing Sacramento City Council members were swarmed by a crowd of city staffers and well-wishers Tuesday night. The City Hall lobby was abuzz with chatter as roughly 100 people turned out to say goodbye to Council members Ray Tretheway, Lauren Hammond and Robbie Waters, who are all leaving their seats later this month. Waters and Tretheway lost their re-election bids in June, while Hammond did not run for re-election. Angelique Ashby, who won the District 1 City Council race, will replace Tretheway starting next Tuesday, according to Assistant City Clerk Stephanie Mizuno. Waters’ District 7 seat will likely be transferred later this month to Darrell Fong, the frontrunner in

When I caught incumbent Sacramento City Councilmember Ray Tretheway’s district director Dan Roth and campaign manager Corin Choppin on video tampering with campaign signs of challenger Angelique Ashby on Friday morning, I honestly didn’t think it would become such a huge story. It began as a video shared with fellow Ashby campaign supporters and volunteers on YouTube. It quickly became front-page news, led television newscasts, and even appeared in newspapers across the country. It has since spiraled into a tangled web of defensive rationalizations, backpedaling, empty apologies, and ultimately a catalyst for an investigation into the possibility of serious violations of campaign laws. Da

Mark Tyndale, vice president of the Sacramento Police Officers Association, sent the following statement to media outlets Tuesday: My concerns regarding the ethics of Dan Roth from Councilmember Tretheway’s Office continue grow as it seems he is weaving a series of dishonest explanations to justify his behavior on the morning of Friday, April 9th. On the YouTube video, he is with Tretheway’s campaign manager from Capitol Campaigns, Corin Choppin, as he pulls Angelique Ashby’s political signs out of the ground and throws them behind the bushes. Apparently, Corin is not only Tretheway’s campaign manager, but is also married to Tretheway’s Chief of Staff, Randi Kay Stevens.  It seems that R

The district director for City Councilman Ray Tretheway said Monday night that he took photos of City Council Candidate Angelique Ashby’s lawn signs in Natomas because he received a complaint that claimed the signs were posted illegally. A YouTube video shows Roth watching Tretheway campaign manager Corrin Choppin remove Ashby signs in Natomas on Friday. Tretheway and Ashby are running against each other for the District 1 seat. At a Monday press conference, Sacramento Police Officers’ Association Vice President Mark Tyndale questioned whether Roth has been making honest statements about the incident. Tyndale took issue with comments in a KCRA 3 news story. “KCRA ran a quote from Dan Ro

A top officer in the Sacramento police officer’s union is saying that City Councilman Ray Tretheway’s district director should be fired if he made dishonest statements about removal of campaign signs. Lawn signs that supported Tretheway's City Council opponent were removed Friday. “It’s my belief that if Dan Roth has not been honest and he has been lying, I don’t see what alternative there is, for either him to resign or Ray Tretheway to fire him,” Sacramento Police Officers’ Association Vice President Mark Tyndale said Monday at a press conference held by the association and Sacramento Area Firefighters Local 522. The Sacramento Bee reported a story Saturday about a YouTube video that s

A gift of $30,000 will be given to Historic Chinatown, located on J Street between 3rd and 5th streets, for improvements to safety and lighting. The funds are coming from the Community Development Block Grant, which is made up of funding by the federal government but is given out at the discretion of the Sacramento City Council. The $30,000 was approved at the March 9 City Council meeting. Jennifer Lee-Lewis, community manager of the Ping Yuen Apartments, said the funds are needed because the area is home to a significant senior population that encounters tripping hazards. These tripping hazards, such as cracked tiles and big tree roots, are harder to spot during the night due to the poo