Daily Sentinel omitted Rep. Rose's reported role in Montrose's controversial recall campaign

Summary: The Daily Sentinel of Grand Junction on March 12 noted that a recall effort against Montrose County Commissioner Bill Patterson (D) ended with an agreement to dismiss a lawsuit against the county clerk. But despite the newspaper's previous reporting on the controversy, the article failed to mention the role state Rep. Ray Rose (R) reportedly played in the unsuccessful recall campaign.

A March 12 article in The Daily Sentinel of Grand Junction reported that the campaign to recall Democratic Montrose County Commissioner Bill Patterson had ended when the "recall committee dropped its lawsuit against County Clerk Fran Long," who had "ruled that only 2,270 of the 5,583 voter signatures submitted by the recall committee were valid, an insufficient amount to trigger the recall." However, while the article reported Patterson's assertion that "the recall was politically motivated," it did not note the newspaper's previous reporting of Republican state Rep. Ray Rose's (Montrose) role in the failed recall effort.

As Colorado Media Matters pointed out, the Daily Sentinel reported on August 15, 2007, that Rose had publicized the petition "at a Republican fundraiser in May," had "delivered documents alleging malfeasance by Patterson to 7th Judicial District Attorney Myrl Serra," and had "held a press conference in June to bring attention to the recall attempt." The Daily Sentinel further reported in the same article, "After no wrongdoing was found [on the part of Patterson], Rose distanced himself from the recall effort and said he had 'nothing to do with it.' "

The March 12 article by Mike Wiggins reported, "An effort to recall Montrose County Commissioner Bill Patterson officially ended this week when a recall committee dropped its lawsuit against County Clerk Fran Long." The article continued:

The Committee to Recall Bill Patterson entered into a stipulated agreement with Long to dismiss the suit against her with prejudice, meaning it cannot be refiled.

The committee sought last year to remove Patterson from office, alleging he improperly influenced the funding of Montrose Regional Airport. Patterson has said the recall was politically motivated and that Al Head, one of the committee members, has business ties to JetAway Aviation, a company that has been involved in a legal battle with the county over fixed-base operations at the airport. Head owns Western Skyways, which operates on JetAway property.

Long ruled that only 2,270 of the 5,583 voter signatures submitted by the recall committee were valid, an insufficient amount to trigger the recall. A total of 3,950 signatures were required to get the recall on last November's ballot.

The committee and Head sued Long, claiming she used unconstitutional statutes to reject many of the signatures.

The stipulated agreement means Long's original declaration that the petitions were insufficient stands. Each side will pay its own attorney's fees.

The committee released a statement Wednesday afternoon through its attorney, Mark Haynes of Denver, vowing it will work to make sure Patterson is not re-elected this fall.

[...]

A state administrative law judge ruled last month that the recall committee violated campaign finance laws by failing to give the state complete information on the committee's finances and failing to establish a separate bank account. The judge ordered the committee to pay a $9,750 fine.

As Colorado Media Matters noted, the Daily Sentinel reported on July 21, 2007, "A petition to recall Commissioner Bill Patterson, a Democrat, from office was based on documents given to Serra by state Rep. Ray Rose, R-Montrose, charging Patterson with 'serious financial improprieties and accounting irregularities.' " The article further reported:

To avoid a conflict of interest, Serra gave the documents to an independent agency, which he did not name in the news release he issued Friday.

"The result of the independent review is that based on the materials submitted, no probable cause exists for the filing of criminal charges in this matter against Commissioner Patterson," Serra wrote.

Rose first announced the recall petition at a Republican fundraiser in late May, and he outlined his views on the recall effort during a news conference June 13.

But when asked Friday afternoon about Serra's statement, Rose said he respected the decision and distanced himself from the recall effort.

"I didn't support it," he said. "I had nothing to do with it."

That seems to contradict statements Rose made in a two-page news release sent the day of his news conference in which he detailed Patterson's alleged misdeeds. It reads, in part: "These are very serious allegations of his lack of honesty, lack of integrity, lack of good judgment and illegal activities on the part of Mr. Patterson."

The Daily Sentinel reported in its August 15, 2007, article that "Patterson, a Democrat, said the petition drive was in part politically motivated" before noting Rose's involvement and conflicting statements:

The petition was first made public by state Rep. Ray Rose, R-Montrose, at a Republican fundraiser in May. Rose also delivered documents alleging malfeasance by Patterson to 7th Judicial District Attorney Myrl Serra, and Rose held a press conference in June to bring attention to the recall attempt.

Serra gave the documents to the La Plata County district attorney to see if an investigation was warranted, and Patterson was exonerated of any wrongdoing. Nothing was found to support allegations of malfeasance, Serra said.

After no wrongdoing was found, Rose distanced himself from the recall effort and said he had "nothing to do with it."

—C.H.