The Brooklyn Park City Council has censured a second councilmember. Councilmember Maria Tran will be barred from certain councilmember activities following an investigation that concluded Tran exhibited hostile behavior in the treatment of an employee.
The City Council voted June 10 to censure Tran, alleging that she created “an intimidating, hostile, and offensive work environment in violation of the Code of Conduct for Elected Officials and the City’s Respectful Workplace Policy.”
A city spokesperson confirmed that Tran appeared at the meeting to speak during the public comment period, but was not present for any other council business, including when council members approved her censure.
Also absent from the meeting was censured councilmember Boyd Morson, who has previously come to Tran’s defense over her investigation. Morson was censured April 15 for criticizing city staff members on his social media account.
Failed reprimand
An investigator recently concluded that Tran “unfairly criticized” an unnamed employee’s work performance “in a number of ways and in a variety of settings” over the past year and a half.
At one point, Tran openly criticized the employee at a public meeting and challenged the employee to step down from their position.
The decision to censure Tran was not the first route the Council took as a result of the investigation.
The City Council opted to issue a formal reprimand to Tran at its May 28 meeting. The reprimand, written in letter form, summarized that Tran had privately agreed that her behavior toward the employee had been inappropriate. However, at the meeting Tran contradicted the letter, doubling down on her assertions and claiming that the employee had filed a workplace complaint because Tran had witnessed the employee using drugs at City Hall.
Conversation then devolved. Tran, Morson and Mayor Hollies Winston engaged in personal arguments about the issue until Councilmember Nichole Klonowski requested a recess of the meeting. Later, the council briefly returned to the dais to adjourn.
Upgrade to censure
According to June 10 agenda documents, based on Tran’s behavior May 28, censure was the next best option. The resolution, prepared by City Attorney Jim Thomson, reasoned that Tran was creating potential legal issues for the city.
“During the discussion of that agenda item, it became clear that Council Member Tran no longer acknowledged the inappropriateness of her behavior towards the employee who had filed the complaint against her,” wrote Thomson. “As a result of Council Member Tran’s statements during the May 28, 2024 Council meeting, the City Council has determined that a censure, rather than a letter of reprimand, is the appropriate action for the City Council to take in response to Council Member Tran’s actions. Council Member Tran’s statements during the May 28 Council meeting and her actions as summarized in the investigative report, in addition to violating the Code of Conduct, expose the City to the risk of potential significant civil liability.”
As a censured councilmember, Tran’s communications to city staff will be filtered by leadership staff and she has been removed from her appointments to city boards and commissions. She can neither appear in an official capacity at city-sponsored events nor can she attend conferences using city funds. She is still able to cast a vote in city council matters.
Tran’s censure can be revisited by the City Council in mid-December.
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