Roseburg Mayor Launches Probe into Council Conduct After Resignation Citing Intimidation

ROSEBURG, Ore. — Kylee Rummel, Roseburg’s Ward 1 Councilor, resigned on Friday, January 24, prompting the mayor to call for an investigation to determine what happened before she resigned.

Roseburg City Council: Mayor Probes Causes For Ward 1 Councilor Resignation

After councilor Rummel submitted her letter of resignation, Roseburg’s mayor called for an investigation into the council’s conduct to determine what led to Rummel’s resignation.

Rummel posted a statement on Facebook over the weekend confirming her resignation and indicating that council members had tried to intimidate her and threaten her job to influence her vote. She did not name the implicated members.

Roseburg Mayor Larry Rich read Rummel’s statement in full on Monday at a city council meeting before calling for an investigation.

Rich indicated that he called for an independent investigation because statements had been made that could lead to possible state law violations of Council conduct and rules, and he intends to find out what led to Rummel’s resignation.

The investigation would specifically focus on whether councilors were intimidated into voting in particular ways, whether jobs were threatened to keep councilors in line, whether Roseburg business was conducted in violation of public meetings laws, and whether the City Manager was denied a proper job evaluation because certain councilors wished to replace the manager with one of their own and fire the current manager.

At the meeting, Mayor Rich said the city lost a good City Councilor who served with integrity and honesty. Shortly after the meeting, he said,  “If there are violations, there will be consequences.”