In the days following his arrest on charges of spousal abuse and child endangerment resulting from an altercation with his wife on Aug. 27, Dawson said he was sorry for the actions that left her bruised and led to a pair of charges against him. Since then, however, he has grown defiant, insisting that he is back on the medications for bipolar disorder from which he suffers and steadfastly refusing to give up the four-year term to which he was elected last year.
The August incident is not the first time Dawson has shown the potential for violence. He’s had at least two angry confrontations that nearly led to blows and had to be broken up by bystanders following board meetings. He also passed a note to a fellow board member during a meeting, threatening to “kick your ass” over a policy disagreement. And he has accused directors Mark Simon and Ray Tetreault of political motivation in calling for his resignation, vowing that their comments meant he would not be leaving.
Then, given an opportunity to address the issue at last week’s CSD meeting, Dawson said nothing. His failure to address the issue with his colleagues and before the public seem to indicate his intention might be to ignore the controversy until it goes away.
But given Discovery Bay’s history of fractious politics, as well as the increasing public awareness and concern over the problem of domestic violence, this problem won’t be going away any time soon. And while Dawson insists that his personal situation will not impede the district from conducting business, that has already proven not to be the case.
Directors at last week’s meeting uttered not a single word about the incident, and instead attempted to conduct business as usual while ignoring the proverbial elephant in the room.
With the prospect of continued paralysis on the board, plus the uncertainty concerning his earlier actions and his current state of mind, the right thing for Dawson to do is step away from the board. Continued defiance and a possibly ugly recall election that could cost the CSD thousands of dollars would have a devastating affect on the board and the community. Before his personal life is drawn further into the maw of public conjecture, Dawson should do the right thing for his community, himself and his family, and resign immediately.
AND AS HARD AS IT IS TO SWALLOW ( I HEAR THEY LIVE IN A FANCY COMMUNITY) HE MIGHT ASK FOR A COURT APPOINTED LAWYER AND THAT GENERALLY DELAYS THINGS. I WOULD JUST LIKE TO BE KEPT UP ON WHAT IS GOING ON. AND BEFORE MRS. DAWSON SAYS THIS IS PRIVATE, ONE GIVES UP A HUGE AMOUNT OF PRIVACY UPON BEING ARRESTED AND ENTERING THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM. YOU CAN REST ASSURED, HOWEVER, THAT MR. DAWSON WILL BE TREATED NO DIFFERENTLY THAN ANYONE ELSE WITH HIS PSYCHIATRIC AND MEDICAL ISSUES,, OR HIS PREVIOUS STANDING IN THE COMMUNITY. I KNOW YOU FELT A PARTICULAR PRIVILEGE OF PRIVACY. IT IS GONE UNTIL THE RESOLUTION OF THE COURT CASE AND RESIGNATION FROM THE CSD. WE WISH YOUR FAMILY THE BEST AND HOPE YOU HEAL FROM THIS AND CAN MOVE ON.
I do not know if Mrs. Dawson is a victim of psychological or physical abuse. But her husband spent a night in jail on $20,000 bail, so by next week we will all see how this pans out. With all respect and concern I still believe that he should resign to take all of the attention away from this issue.
P.S. I do not think that people would necessarily deemed Mr. Dawson fit for this position had this taken place prior to the Piepho sneak-a-thon.
This IS his wife. If he had a record, it would have been easily found by a simple background check - which I can promise you this group of his detractors would have shelled out the $20 to do. What you are suggesting as far as his medical records is illegal and discriminatory, and frankly its lucky for the district that you are not providing legal counsel to the CSD.
I am also offended by your insinuation that I am an abused woman or that I would ever allow anyone to put their hands on my children.
And since when does the allegation of a completely unrelated crime indicate that someone has a substance abuse problem, or that a person with a clean record, deemed worthy and elected by the people, would all of a sudden start showing up to their JOB under the influence? Brian doesn't even DRINK alcohol. You are a sad, misinformed woman who has fallen victim to the easy trap of stereotyping, predjudice, and kicking a man you don't like just because he is down.
Brian has chosen to honor his commitment to the voters and also to show his children that you must face your problems, as hard (and in this town humiliating) as that can be. He would not be doing so without my full support.
You add nothing to the conversation.
Get a hobby.
Don't you have anything better to do at 2 in the morning like, I don't know, sleep?
Lord knows, his wife has gone the extra mile, but all of this
is distracting the community from the jobs at hand.. Mary Piepho appointed him, then he was elected. I say, if there is no legal way to remove him, take him off any committee assignments so he will have nothing to do. Make him in charge of cold calls to residents who did not turn in their surveys.
The bar him from special meetings by sating that he cannot be there as you are speaking about the trouble he is causing the community. And get Proof from a Licensed M.D. that he has
Bi-Polar disease, or some physical ailment instead. As the M.D.
if Mr. Dawson is fit to work on the Committee.
Mr. Dawson, you owe your time, your energy and your loyalty to your wife and children. These little kkindergarten Plus deals are not worth your time but your family IS FOR SURE WORTH EVERY THING you can do to make it right for your wife and kids. NO ONE CAN FIX THIS BUT YOU. DO YOU EVEN GET IT? Sincerely, (for the most part, Wendi Rank
I am so disgusted by the attitudes and actions of this rag and not at all surprised that someone else's pain would bring so much glee to the regular local naysayers. The details of the incident (unfortunately for you) are not a matter of public record, and Brian hasn't been convicted of a crime. Regardless of how you people would like to see things run in this town and this state, he's still innocent until proven guilty, and no one should make permanent decisions about their future based on inflated allegations - and
we've received a surprisingly large number of emails and calls of support from friends and fellow residents telling us the same thing.
Your lack of humanity is appalling, and this is a new level of bottom-feeding I thought even too low for this paper and the local loudmouths. Whatever keeps the ad dollars coming in right?
To “whose_fault” I would ask: What kind of bias was ThePress demonstrating when they endorsed Dawson last year?
And don’t forget that when Dawson resigns from public office the distraction he brings to the CSD and the local media will completely go away. He will then be able to work through his personal issues without these distractions. It is very unfortunate that the victims of Dawson's uncontrolled rage (his family) are being forced to see this play out in public, but Brian Dawson, not ThePress, owns responsibility for that.
I have heard from one of the other directors that no one but these same people have complained or asked him to resign. These same people who cannot get a few hundred signatures to fight a rate increase are going to get enough for a recall election?
Why don't you stop dragging this man and his family through the mud? He's said they are working through this, so why don't you let them do it privately? Why should his wife and kids have to be humiliated on top of what they're going through? I'm embarrassed that I have to read this garbage. I understand leaving this guy alone won't help you sell advertising, but at least it would leave a little doubt as to whether or not this paper is worth the paper it's printed on.