Tacoma City Manager Eric Anderson said Friday both he and the City Council learned during a closed-door meeting two years ago that police spokesman Mark Fulghum fell asleep after being asked to issue an Amber Alert for Zina Linnik in 2007, delaying public notice about the girl’s abduction by six hours.
But three former and two current members who served on the Tacoma City Council in 2009 said Friday they do not remember ever being informed that Fulghum fell asleep and delayed the alert.
“I don’t recall hearing that at all,” said former Councilwoman Connie Ladenburg, who said she attended the meeting. “No, that’s news to me.”
The revelations about Fulghum – which Anderson said were first brought to his and the council’s attention during a briefing on a legal claim filed by the Linnik family in 2009 – didn’t prompt him or any other city official to take a closer look at Fulghum’s actions, he said.
“I didn’t like hearing that,” Anderson said of learning that Fulghum had fallen asleep. “But I didn’t necessarily see any indications of a violation of policy. ”
Mayor Marilyn Strickland, who accompanied Anderson to The News Tribune’s offices Friday to discuss new actions being taken in the city’s handling of the Linnik case, said she “probably was” at the executive session Anderson referred to, but didn’t remember hearing the details about Fulghum.
“We heard a lot, and that’s not what stood out,” Strickland said.
When discussing how he became aware of Fulghum’s sleep-induced delay, Anderson cited an executive session during which city attorneys held a briefing with the council on the Linnik family’s legal claim. Anderson’s statements to the newspaper Friday are the first public indications that the City Council may have known about Fulghum’s actions before they emerged in recent court documents and news reports.
On Friday, The News Tribune asked the city for the date of the executive session meeting and details of those who attended it. City spokesman Rob McNair-Huff said he wasn’t readily able to determine the exact date, but that it took place on either July 7, July 14 or Aug. 25, 2009. He added the city does not keep records of which council members attend such closed-door meetings.
Anderson said Friday he couldn’t divulge many details about the discussion due to legal constraints that bar city officials from revealing executive sessions discussions.
When pressed why neither he nor the council acted on the new information about the Amber Alert delay to further investigate the matter, Anderson variously cited executive session prohibitions and no clear signs that any personnel rules had been violated.
“You’ve got to remember, in the context of the meeting, the details that were provided were so horrific, I can’t tell you what anyone remembered,” Anderson added.
The News Tribune attempted to contact every member of the 2009 City Council on Friday, speaking with current members Strickland and Jake Fey, and former members Ladenburg, Bill Baarsma and Mike Lonergan.
Not all were sure they had attended the specific meeting cited by Anderson, but not one could recall ever being informed that an Amber Alert was delayed in the case by a sleeping officer.
“What I recollect is the city manager saying that we had followed all the proper procedures and that we did everything humanly possible that we could to apprehend the individual involved,” said Baarsma, who was mayor at the time.
“I don’t remember that either the city manager or the police chief said anything about anyone falling asleep,” he added. “I think I probably would have been stunned by that comment. I just don’t remember any such comment being made.”
Fey, who previously told The News Tribune he learned of the matter only by reading stories in The News Tribune last week, said Friday he stood by that statement.
“I have no recollection of having heard about it before,” Fey said. “I stand by what I’ve already told you.”
Ladenburg, who was chairwoman of the council’s Public Safety and Human Services Committee in 2009, said Friday she remembers attending the closed-door meeting and believes she would have remembered the details about Fulghum.
“That’s pretty, kind of, outrageous behavior,” she said. “ … I think that would have made the council have a strong reaction to hearing something like that.”
“I do remember a vague discussion about a delay,” she added. “But as I recall, we got the same kind of explanation that you guys got; well, that the public got: That (police) were doing some additional investigation and they didn’t know if it warranted an Amber Alert.”
Former council members Rick Talbert and Julie Anderson, and current members Spiro Manthou and Lauren Walker, did not respond to requests for comment Friday in time for this story.
After speaking with the five members, The News Tribune asked Eric Anderson on Friday evening to comment about their lack of recollection regarding the Fulghum details. He responded he was certain City Attorney Elizabeth Pauli had informed council members who attended the meeting.
“I heard it very clearly,” Anderson said. “And it was in a situation in which there was some very ugly and very graphic details that were very upsetting to council members. So it doesn’t surprise me they don’t remember.”
“It was also two years ago,” Anderson added. “And no one can keep notes in closed sessions. If they don’t remember, they don’t remember.”
Pauli did not respond to a request for comment by press time.
Lewis Kamb: 253-597-8542
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