San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones may face censure over alleged Code of Conduct violations involving profanity and intimidation.
SAN ANTONIO — Tuesday, San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones addressed a complaint against her that led to councilmembers deciding to proceed with a vote to potentially censure her on Friday.
The incident in question was detailed in a Feb. 9 complaint filed by District 1 Councilwoman Sukh Kaur, which accuses the mayor of acting unprofessional and violating the city’s Code of Conduct. In the complaint, Kaur claims Jones “used profanity, abusive language, and intimidating behavior directed at me and in close proximity to others in the room,” while in the city council break room Feb. 9.
Monday, city council members attended a meeting to review the results of an investigation into the complaint. Multiple councilmembers confirmed they agreed to move forward with a resolution calling for Mayor Jones’s potential censure. The vote on that resolution is expected to take place Friday.
Tuesday, Mayor Jones held a press conference, where she expressed regret for her actions.
“I have apologized to her privately, but I wanted to make sure everybody knew that I had done the right thing and, and certainly apologized for hurting her feelings. That was certainly never my intention,” Mayor Jones said.
She went on to say she has a different perspective and different life experiences than her colleagues.
“As an Air Force veteran, Iraq War veteran, I admit that I have a different set of experiences that that allow me to view things a little bit differently than some of my colleagues. And that morning, we were discussing public safety, and I should not have raised my voice and I should not have used profanity,” Mayor Jones said.
Part of the resolution calls for leadership training for the mayor. She responded to questions about that provision, saying she hopes it is something the whole council takes on.
She also said she hopes the incident could be put behind them and they can move forward with governing.
“I am proud of the work that I have done and doing, and will continue to do with my colleagues. Actually, just right now just across the hall, the planning commission, the task force that I established to look at increasing the supply of affordable housing for groups that have traditionally been, frankly an afterthought… I asked the task force to look at how we could increase the supply of those things.”
A censure is a formal and symbolic reprimand; it wouldn’t remove Jones from office.