BROWNSVILLE CITY MANAGER CANDIDATE'S HANDLING OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT CHARGES COMES UNDER REVIEW

From the editor:  The City of Brownsville, currently floating downstream without leadership in key positions such as City Manager, City Attorney, Health Director, etc. will get its first look today at three finalists for City Manager; Juan Guerra, Noel Bernal and Jesus Garza.

All three men will be at the Brownsville Events Center for a meet-and-greet today from 5:00 to 7:00 PM.  In a series of articles, we will discuss pertinent issues relative to all three candidates: 

BROWNSVILLE CITY MANAGER CANDIDATE'S HANDLING OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT CHARGES COMES UNDER REVIEW

Juan Guerra, City Manager of Pharr

Juan Guerra, promoted from being Pharr's Finance Director to City Manager in 2015 has already dealt with sexual harassment charges within his administration.  

Since he's applied to be Brownsville's City Manager, we will look into his handling of this matter in 2017.

The allegations involved Pharr's Media Director Gary Rodriguez, who also managed the Pharr Events Center.

As KRGV Channel 4 News reported:  

Gary Rodriguez, Former Pharr Media
Director, Event Center Manager

Four employees accused Pharr Media Director Gary Rodriguez, who managed the city events center, of sexual harassment during March and April 2016. During depositions, they described a wide range of behavior ranging from unwanted touching to telling lewd stories at work.

The most serious allegation involved Box Office Supervisor Dahlia G. Ybarra, who said Rodriguez grabbed her upper thigh during a city event. Layout Supervisor Felix De La Garza Jr. said he witnessed the incident.

Pharr's City Manager Juan Guerra, now applying for the Brownsville job, said at the time that he believed employees at the Boggus Ford Events Center accused their boss of sexual harassment  because Pharr stopped paying them virtually unlimited overtime.

When Media Director Gary Rodriguez was approached by the city about the allegations, he said he couldn't remember whether or not he had touched Ms. Ybarra inappropriately.

Gary does not remember grabbing anyone’s thigh at the team building event that Finance and HR hosted,” according to the human resources director’s notes. “If he touched her at any point it was probably a reaction out of emotion of them winning but he cannot admit to the allegation because he does not recall touching her.”

After Ybarra filed a lawsuit, Rodriguez signed a sworn statement denying the allegation.


Asked why Pharr considered the complaint "inconclusive” when another employee witnessed what happened, City Manager Guerra said he didn't know.

"That's a good question," Guerra said, adding that he trusts the human resources director to make the right decision.

The city accepted Mr. Rodriguez's resignation and settled with Ybarra and the others for $43,000.