Fleck: No Payments Made For Brennan Bluff

Tim Brennan is apparently studying the undertaker business

Tim Brennan, you might recall, is the attorney hired by political consultant Michael Fleck to get Kimberly Velez off the Allentown City Council ballot. Velez is an ardent opponent of the water lease advocated by Allentown Mayor Edwin Pawlowski. A Latina, she would draw votes that might otherwise go incumbent Council members Julio Guridy and Cynthia Mota. Fleck happens to represent Guridy, Mota and Pawlowski. It would be in the interest of them all to be rid of Velez.

Instead of filing a challenge, Brennan took it upon himself to track down Velez, a newcomer to politics. He essentially scared her off the ballot. Fortunately, Lehigh County Judge Michele A. Varricchio restored Velez to the ballot after a half day hearing in which Brennan's demeanor on the stand was noted by the Court itself. During the hearing, Brennan dimed Fleck as the person who hired him.

So who hired Fleck? Pawlowski? Guridy? Mota? All three? I've been unable to check Lehigh County campaign finance reports, so I decided to call Fleck and just ask him. According to Fleck, you won't see any payments to Brennan on any of these reports because Brennan never billed him.

He's a good little soldier, isn't he? I see a Solicitorship in his future.

Kim Velez Back On Allentown Ballot

From Left to Right: Monica Schwab (cousin); Lucia Velez (mom); Orestes Velez (dad) : Att'y  Jeff Fleischaker; Kim Velez: Att'y Bill Platt; supporter and friend Adam Bevan

(A shorter version of this story was published on 4/10/11, and was updated with more detail on 4/11/11, at 12:10 AM).

It was a victory, not for a political newcomer, but for democracy. After a half-day of testimony, Lehigh County Judge Michele A. Varricchio ordered that Kimberly Velez be placed back on the ballot in the crowded Allentown City Council race. She had withdrawn under improper pressure from an elections attorney, acting under instructions from the Mayor's political consultant, Michael Fleck. Velez will now be one of nine candidates seeking four open seats. Fleck also represents two of those candidates, incumbents Julio Guridy and Cynthia Mota.

Jeffrey Fleischaker and partner Bill Platt, who represented Velez without charge, were able to paint a picture of Velez and the circumstances that led her to withdraw.

Kimbery Velez is, like many Allentown residents, a water lease opponent, but was unhappy with a City Council that she felt was unresponsive to the wishes of residents. After attending a frustrating year's worth of City Council meetings, Velez was encouraged to run herself by incumbent City Council member Jeanette Eichenwald. At a Democratic meeting, Martin Estrada also spent some time advising Velez on how to circulate petitions and raise money. Then, with Eichenwald's help, Velez began going door-to-door with a voters' list. Once she thought she had enough signatures, she filed her nominating petitions. Voter Registrar Tim Benyo told her she was on the ballot unless she received a call.

That's what happened, and Velez was under the impression that election officials wanted her off the ballot.

On St. Patrick's Day, a Sunday, Velez received word that her cousin, Monica Schwab, had just been called, on her cell phone, by Attorney Tim Brennan. Schwab stated that Brennan identified himself as an attorney with the Election Bureau, although Brennan later stated that he had identified himself as an "election attorney." Both Schwab and Brennan agree that he stated he was conducting an investigation.

That same day, Brennan called Velez, and according to her, identified himself as an attorney with the Democratic Party. Brennan believes he told her, "I represent a qualified Democratic voter in the City of Allentown.

But he didn't. He later acknowledged that his client was actually political consultant Michael Fleck, who is currently managing election contests both for Mayor Edwin Pawlowski as well as Council members Julio Guridy and Cynthia Mota. Pawlowski obviously would not want someone on the ballot who challenges him on City issues. Guriday and Mota would just as obviously be concerned that Velez, who is a Latina, would draw votes away from them.  

Brennan questioned Velez' residency, as well as the validity of the signatures she listed on her nomination petition. He recommended that she withdraw from the race. "Otherwise, we'll settle this in court, and it will be costly," he advised someone who had no attorney. At no time did he advise her to seek independent legal advice. He instead sent her a prepared withdrawal form, and told her to call him as soon as it was filed.

"I was devastated," Velez stated.

Tim Benyo, Voter Registrar, personally received the withdrawal from Velez. He acknowledged that Velez was upset about having to withdraw.

Later that day, after speaking to supporters and realizing that Brennan had no affiliation with either the Democratic Party or the election bureau, she asked Benyo if she could withdraw the withdrawal. Because she spoke of coercion and intimidation, Benyo recommended that Velez speak to the DA or a Judge.  

Velez got nowhere on those fronts.

But she was lucky enough to attract the interest of two Lehigh County attorneys, Jeffrey Fleischaker and partner Bill Platt, who were interested in righting a wrong. She was lucky that Lehigh County Solicitor John Ashcraft was more interested in seeing justice done than in winning. Best of all, the judge who heard this matter was actually willing to listen.

Although she declined to assign any "ill will" to Attorney Tim Brennan, Judge Varricchio did call him "naive" for thinking that a political newcomer would not be intimidated by a Sunday call from an election attorney using words like "investigation," especially when it "wan't clear who he was and who he was doing it for."

She drew particular attention to Brennan's demeanor on the stand, where she had to tell him herself to speak more slowly and take deep breaths.

"I have to find that Ms. Velez based her decision on the potential threat of a lawsuit," she concluded, adding that "she did not have an intelligent and knowing understanding of the consequences of her withdrawal".

Although Judge Varricchio initially called it duress, she later amended her language at the request of Attorney Dan McCarthy, who was representing Brennan and insisted that Brennan had acted innocently.

Judge Varricchio rejected an argument that the Election Code requires that withdrawals must be filed with the state bureau of elections. Attorney Ashcraft told the Court that the law, first drafted in 1937, has been amended many times and is poorly written. But he added that no office has ever required that withdrawals must be filed with the state.

That left one question - ballot position. Tom Benyo and Attorney Ashcraft worried about notice for a new drawing, when Velez voluntarily agreed to take the last spot. "That's certainly fair," said Judge Varricchio. "Thank you Miss Velez," she added noting that they both must be used to being last with surnames that begin with a "V".  Attorney Ashcraft thanked Velez, too.

After it was all over, I got these parting comments:

Bill Platt- "Our firm did a public service and we couldn't be more happy with the result."

Orestes Velez (Kim's dad): "We were counting on the truth, and the truth prevailed. When the truth prevails, everyone wins."

Lehigh County Solicitor John Ashcraft: "We're satisfied. We wanted to uphold the statutory interpretation [of the Elections Code]".

Kim Velez thanked her lawyers, adding, "I'm anxious to start speaking to the voters."

Solicitor John Ashcraft, Registrar Tim Benyo, Deputy Terri Harding

Velez Takes Her Case to Court

Allentown City Council candidate Kim Velez, who was essentially conned into withdrawing her nomination petitions by an attorney working under the supervision of Pawlowski's Puppets, has taken her case to court.

Papers filed later yesterday by Attorney Bill Platt seek to have her reinstated as a candidate. In addition to claiming duress, Platt argues that the withdrawal was ineffective because it was never forwarded to the Secretary of the Commonwealth.

The Petition is below. How do you rule? I do not yet have a Court date.

Updated 10:30 AM to include Petition

Velez Petition for Reinstatement on Ballot

Att'y Bill Platt Takes The Banner For Kim Velez

Last week, I told you about Allentown City Council candidate Kim Velez, the victim of strongarm tactics by the Allentown Democratic machine. You see, they already had enough Latinos. She would just draw votes from Julio Guridy and Cynthia Mota. To make matters worse, she opposes Mayor Edwin Pawlowski's water privatization scheme. Attorney Tim Brennan was dispatched to bully her out of the race, and after Sunday calls to Velez and her family, he succeeded. He event sent her a pre-printed withdrawal form, which she filed the next day.

Velez was to learn later that week hat she had been conned, the victim of a lawyer who, even putting the best spin on things, had acted inappropriately.

Is this the end of the line?

No. And that's thanks to an attorney who is acting not just appropriately, but in the highest traditions of the Lehigh County Bar. Bill Platt and his partner, Jeffrey Fleischaker, are representing Velez pro bono publico.

Velez, who is both attractive and well-spoken, is a potential Democratic Superstar. Platt, a former GOP Chair in Lehigh, is representing her anyway.

Why? Because our democratic system should be above party affiliations. Whether Velez is ultimately right or wrong, her cause needs to be heard. Platt, to the credit of his profession, will make sure that happens.

I'm proud to know him.

But his father still scares the shit out of me.

LC Dems: Brennan Lacked Authority to Contact Candidate

Yesterday, I told you that Allentown City Council candidate Kim Velez was pressured into withdrawing by Allentown Attorney Tim Brennan. He called her on a Sunday, and according to both Velez and members of her family, identified himself as an attorney for the Lehigh County Democratic Party. After telling her that her signatures were inadequate and that she failed the residency requirements, he told her she had to withdraw and emailed her a form, all neatly filled out.

Thinking he was some official in the government and was there to help, she complied, especially after he warned her that fighting"could be costly."

Brennan denied he ever said he was calling on behalf of the Lehigh County Democratic Party, but clammed up pretty quickly when I spoke to him yesterday. Democratic Party Chair Rick Daugherty has told the Morning Call he was not acting on behalf of the party, and party leader Bar Johnston also confirmed that in a telephone conversation with me last night.

Having been disbarred myself, I'm an expert on lawyer ethics. It appears to me that, regardless whether he misrepresented himself as a lawyer for the Lehigh County Democratic Party, Brennan's conduct was unethical. According to Disciplinary Rule 4.3(b),

During the course of a lawyer's representation of a client, a lawyer shall not give advice to a person who is not represented by a lawyer, other than the advice to secure counsel, if the lawyer knows or reasonably should know the interests of such person are or have a reasonable possibility of being in conflict with the interests of the lawyer's client.

Instead of using scare tactics, Brennan should have filed a ballot challenge and advised Velez to seek counsel.

This rule obviously exists to prevent precisely the kind of intimidation that occurred here. Violation of this rule is prima facia evidence that the Velez withdrawal was under duress.

There is no doubt in my mind that Brennan was acting on behalf of incumbent Council members Julio Guridy and Cynthia Mota, who are fearful she will draw Latino votes from them. But I have not contacted them.

Allentown City Council Candidate Scared Off Ballot

Kim Velez

I've been pretty disgusted with Allentown lately. Democracy there has been replaced by an urban growth regime in which politicians and key figures in the business community have co-opted each other, to the detriment of its dirt-poor citizenry. For most of them, the challenge is paying next month's rent, not some stupid election. But when you don't take an interest in your government, it sure has a way of taking an interest in you, and often in ways that are very detrimental. The latest instance of this in Allentown is Mayor Edwin Pawlowski's water privatization scheme. His bobbleheads on City Council are prepared to do everything he wants, but the cracks that first began to appear with his NIZ proposal are now gushing forth with a torrent of public discontent.

This is where Kim Velez enters the scene. She's a well-spoken young lady with excellent credentials. She's currently a manager in Marketing and Public Affairs at Lehigh Valley Health Network. A Hofstra grad, she's also done marketing for Telemundo, USA Networks and Comcast.

Allentown is her home. It's where she grew up.

Concerned about Pawlowski's risky proposal, Velez began attending City Council meetings. Three of their seven 7 members are appointees. "I didn't feel that we had the proper representation," she told me yesterday and decided to take the plunge and run for City Council herself.

With the help of the Grand Dame of Allentown politics, Jeanette Eichenwald, Velez went door to door with a voter list, soliciting signatures. She tells me she collected between 130-145, and filed her petition last week.

But on Sunday, she received a threatening call that scared this newbie right off the ballot.

Attorney Tim Brennan, who just happens to be Barron Von Footinmouth's Solicitor, called her in his most official sounding voice and told her she failed to meet residency requirements. He identified himself as an attorney for the Lehigh County Democratic Party, although I doubt anyone inside the party leadership authorized him to hound her.

When Velez heard the words "Lehigh County," she immediately concluded he was some official from the government. Brennan began telling her that she failed to meet the residency requirements, which is complete and utter bullshit.. Under Allentown's Home Rule Charter, if she can vote anywhere inside the City, she's qualified to run for office.

Once it became apparent to Brennan that Velez could jump through that hoop pretty easily, he switched gears and told her that only 75 of her signatures were valid and she had to withdraw. If she refused, "it would be very costly," he warned.

That's just more bullshit. It would cost her nothing to defend a petition challenge, unless she hied an attorney.

"I figured he was with the County, so I filed a withdrawal," Velez tells me.

She was to later learn that Brennan, who does legal work for political consultant Mike Fleck, had conned her. Now she's wiser and is upset at the "scare tactics" used to get her off the ballot.

Velez, a Latina, would draw votes from Julio Guridy and Cynthia Mota. They had promised to support her and even initially misled her into thinking they opposed Pawlowski's privatization plans. Guridy and Mota are both using Fleck, who also happens to be Mayor Pawlowski's political consultant.

The last thing they want is a Latina Eichenwald.  

"It leaves a lot to be desired," Velez states of Brennan's Bluff. "Should I be scared because I want to do public service?"

In Allentown, the answer to that question is Yes.

I received this report too late in the day to get a reaction from Tim Brennan. I will call him later today. I believe he misrepresented himself.

Velez is currently seeking an attorney so that she can be reinstated on the ballot. That should be an uphill battle but should be fought. I think a judge should make a decision in this matter.

Michael Molovinsky has a report as well.  

Updated 10:50 AM: Brennan Declines Comment. - As promised, I reached out to Tim Brennan this morning. At first, he denied having identified himself as being with the Lehigh County Democratic Party, though Velez claims that is what he told her and several members of her family. "It's something I'm comfortable with," he said. But as I continued to ask questions, he suddenly said he was unable to talk about it because of the "ongoing matter."

Actually, it's far from "ongoing", thanks to him. Her candidacy is pretty much at an end, given a public policy that favors quick resolution and finality in election disputes.