At a meeting on Jan. 8, Camp Verde Town Councilman Joe Butner caused controversy by bringing up an incomplete police report featuring a complaint against a Camp Verde resident who was seeking a position on the town’s planning and zoning commission.
The individual named in the report, Bruce George, removed his name from consideration at the time, seeking to avoid publicity regarding the accusation, which he repeatedly denied.
In the days that followed, George has chosen to put himself back into the spotlight by filing a formal complaint Jan. 13 with the Town of Camp Verde regarding Butner’s actions at the council meeting on Jan. 8.
“Councilor Butner started asking questions in an interrogative manner trying to introduce some unsubstantiated allegations that only he knew about,” George wrote in his complaint. “Unfortunately, he did make these allegations part of the public record. This is wrong! This was very unprofessional conduct and is against all the rules in the Town Code of Conduct.”
George’s complaint includes reference to sections of the Town Council Policies, Rules and Procedures, including sections barring personal attacks and harassment, and urged that Butner be sanctioned in accordance with town policies regarding council misconduct.
According to Town Manager Russ Martin, the council will discuss the complaint and what consequences, if any, Butner could face at a meeting in early February. Martin joined Mayor Charlie German and the town’s attorney in a meeting with George about the complaint on Jan. 15.
Martin also stressed that a decision on whether Butner had violated council conduct did not require him to have made a direct violation of the rules.
Following publication of the story about the council meeting on Jan. 8, George said that CVMO had contacted him on Jan. 6, nearly a month after the alleged incident on Dec. 13, and left a voicemail. George said he did not speak directly with anyone from CVMO until Jan. 9, the day after the Jan. 8 meeting, when he denied the allegation.
CVMO declined to comment for this story to explain when George was contacted or why it took nearly a month to contact him regarding the allegation.
At the Town Council meeting on Jan. 15, multiple members of the Camp Verde community spoke up during the public comment section in opposition to Butner’s actions.
“This is unprofessional and disgraceful behavior on the part of the councilman,” said Camp Verde resident Kathy Davis at the meeting. “Ambushing the citizens — if this is the code of conduct, it’s not appropriate for the council. He should apologize to Bruce George and to the Town Council. He should also apologize to the people of Camp Verde.”
Steve Landingham went further.
“I think Joe Butner should be removed from the city council,” he said.
Some in the community took issue with Butner’s receipt of the police report from the CVMO, which included the stamp “Dissemination Restricted.”
According to Camp Verde Marshal Corey Rowley, the report was released through the regular public records release process, after Town Councilman Bill LeBeau made a formal request of the marshal’s office, which must provide access to all police reports under Arizona state law.
The CVMO does not redact public records that may be embarrassing to an individual, only redacting evidence or witness information that could jeopardize an ongoing case.
However, after a review of this instance, Rowley indicated that the CVMO will slightly change its policies to add a stamp marking a record as “Prepared For Public Release” in order to clear up confusion, since “Dissemination Restricted” only applies to release from the CVMO, not what is done with a report once it is given to a member of the public.
