November 8th 2024.
On a Wednesday evening, the Alameda City Council gathered to discuss whether or not to reprimand one of their own, Councilmember Trish Herrera Spencer, for her actions during a recent trip to Long Beach, California. However, Spencer was not present at the meeting, which did not go unnoticed by her fellow councilmembers.
It was revealed that during the League of California Cities conference in Long Beach, Spencer had been found intoxicated on the sidewalk in the early hours of October 18th. She was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment before returning to Alameda later that day. While there was no official punishment handed down to Spencer, who had recently lost her re-election bid, some councilmembers did express their disappointment in her behavior, citing a breach of the city's code of conduct.
Councilmember Malia Vella even drew a comparison between Spencer's actions and those of a city employee, stating that the council should hold themselves to the same standards that they hold their employees. Spencer's supporters, on the other hand, defended her, claiming that she was the victim of a crime and had even suffered a concussion as a result of the incident.
During the public comment period, one resident even suggested that the whole ordeal was a setup by the council in an attempt to remove Spencer from her position. Despite these claims, Vella shared that the city's inquiries had confirmed that Spencer had been drinking excessively during the conference, as observed by both conference attendees and Long Beach law enforcement and medical staff.
Vella also alleged that Spencer had a history of drinking excessively at public events, which violated the city's code of conduct for elected officials. Councilmember Tracy Jensen and Vice Mayor Tom Daysog, however, did not support the resolution to reprimand Spencer. Jensen stated that she was more concerned about Spencer's well-being than her actions that night, while Daysog pointed out a lack of concrete evidence.
With a divided council and an absent Spencer, Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft made a final statement, urging Spencer to seek help for substance abuse and mental health in the aftermath of the incident. She defended the council's decision to consider reprimanding Spencer, stating that it was important to uphold the city's code of conduct, especially in the face of such controversy.
"It was a difficult motion to bring forward, but it was the right thing to do," Ashcraft said. She also expressed her hope that Spencer would seek the necessary help and support to overcome her struggles with alcohol.
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