'Bully': Ex-GOP lawmaker must have chaperone after odd incident involving political sign
An Arizona town councilman from Fountain Hills has been banned from interacting with any town employee without a chaperone following a bizarre incident involving a political sign, The Arizona Republic reports.
"Fountain Hills City Council sanctioned Councilmember Allen Skillicorn, barring him from the council’s vice mayor position, removing tax-dollar funding for him to participate in meetings and events, and mandating he have a monitor any time he interacts with a town employee in person," reported Lux Butler. "In February, Skillicorn was found in violation of Fountain Hills City Council Code of Ethics by a third-party investigating law firm, Fitzgibbons Law Offices. Investigators state in the reports that Skillicorn’s actions on two separate occasions violated multiple sections of the council’s ethics guidelines."
"In my opinion, and the opinion of the council majority, Allen Skillicorn has behaved like a bully," said fellow councilmember Brenda Kalivianakis. "He has embarrassed the town by flouting the very code of ethics he swore to uphold when he took office. The council reluctantly did what had to be done."
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In one of the offending incidents detailed in an ethics report, Skillicorn improperly placed a political sign in violation of city codes, and when Fountain Hills City Code Enforcement officer confiscated it, Skillicorn followed a "tracking device attached to the sign" to go after him, "while flashing his high beam lights," ultimately chasing him to the nearest police station. The sign was eventually given back to him, de-escalating the incident.
In a recent interview, Skillicorn defended his conduct, saying the investigation was a “partisan political hit job” and adding “the arrogance of this administration should concern every citizen in our community.”
Before serving on the Fountain Hills council, Skillicorn was a Republican state representative in Illinois, where, among other things, he faced an ethics investigation after he was recorded voting on several bills he wasn't present for.