‘Peacock’ Portland councilors won’t be investigated over texts

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Oregon Government Ethics Commission had warned it would dismiss complaints against the Portland City Councilors who took part in a private group chat, but now it’s official.

Six Portland councilmembers will not face an investigation after the Oregon Government Ethics Commission voted to dismiss all complaints against them during its executive session on Friday.

The commission previously said it would dismiss the complaints because the mandatory grievance process was not followed, as KOIN 6 News has reported.

While there was no discussion of the complaints against the councilors during the commission’s meeting on Friday, there was some discussion of the statute requiring the commission to dismiss the complaints when the grievance process has not been followed, Senior Operations Manager Becky Maison said.

Specifically, Oregon law requires a written grievance to be submitted to the governing body that is believed to be in violation within 30 days of the alleged offense. Then, they must give the body 21 days to respond. If this process isn’t followed, the ethics commission is required to dismiss the complaint, a spokesperson previously told KOIN 6 News.

Councilors Candace Avalos, Jamie Dunphy, Sameer Kanal, Tiffany Koyama Lane, Angelita Morillo and Mitch Green came under criticism after the Willamette Week first reported they were involved in a private group chat. The councilors refer to themselves as “Peacock,” short for “progressive caucus.”