Darlene Sanchez, as Assistant City Manager, was also copied on the Notification of Request for Resolution of Disagreement. She was informed that the City Auditor had been directed to violate professional standards, yet took no action to protect the integrity of the audit process.
Sanchez reviewed the completed investigative file for Case 44, which alleged a multimillion-dollar bribery and kickback scheme. Despite knowing that the Ontario Police Department had not conducted an investigation into the matter—and that the assigned investigation was fatally deficient—Sanchez used the discredited report as the basis for retaliatory action. She is the executive who formally filed the recommendation for Brad Neumann’s termination, even though the investigation’s findings lacked basic evidentiary support.
As a member of the Internal Audit Committee, Sanchez also failed in her duty to address the disagreement between management and the auditor, as prescribed by the committee’s established procedures.