Cypress Councilmember Frances Marquez has sued the city and several of her colleagues in federal court, alleging she was retaliated against and twice censured for speaking out about the city’s election system.
Marquez, elected to the City Council in November 2020, names City Manager Peter Grant and Councilmembers Scott Minikus, Bonnie Peat and Anne Mallari as defendants in the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday, Aug. 20, in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana.
The suit alleges the city violated Marquez’s First Amendment free speech rights and engaged in unfair business practices when Marquez advocated for a change in City Council representation from at-large system to district elections.
“As Cypress City Councilmember, I speak out against corruption and work to uplift our residents’ voices. That’s why I supported the transition to district-based elections to ensure all voters in Cypress have an equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice that are reflective of the diversity of our community,” Marquez said in a statement.
Censured twice
Marquez alleges in her lawsuit she was censured twice in 2022. The first time was in June for interfering with the city manager’s selection of a department director and engaging a consultant regarding a California Voting Rights and election system presentation, which Marquez alleges was in retaliation for her exercising her right to speak on important political issues.
The City Council again censured her in September that year for violating the city’s ethics code dealing with civility, conduct and governance for comments she made to Cypress High School students during visits to the school on Sept. 7 and 8.
Marquez was one of three guest speakers at the high school who met with government students to discuss civic engagement and community service. The suit says she was “highly qualified” to talk on the subject of civic engagement because of her positions as a councilmember, a government professor and a senior legislative staff member in Congress, as well as having master’s degree in public policy and a doctorate in political science.
Students, parents complain
But Marquez’s presentation resulted in complaints to the city from several parents as well as an Anaheim Union High School District board member who expressed concerns about potential “indoctrination” of students, former Mayor Paulo Morales said in 2022.
The district canceled a planned third day of speaking at the school by the trio, which included City Council candidate Helen Le and school board candidate Troy Tanaka.
According to the lawsuit, students and parents informed city officials that Marquez’s presentation to students “started out about politics and running for office, but quickly changed to how nobody gets along, how everybody is out to get her, how the City is being sued due to redistricting, and how the City Council is going against what the residents want.”
In response, the Council fined Marquez $100, suspended her monthly stipend for 90 days and ordered her to issue a formal written apology to Cypress High School and the Anaheim Union High School District, according to the lawsuit.
Marquez also alleges she was ordered in January 2022 “to not interact with any city department heads and to conduct all city business through City Manager Peter Grant, which substantially interfered with her ability to perform in her elected role.”
Additionally, Marquez alleges the city did not indemnify her in a lawsuit challenging the city’s election process, which resulted in the city settling the case for $835,000 in July and transitioning to a by-district election system starting in November. The lawsuit alleged the city’s lack of political districts has led to racially polarized voting and impaired the ability of minority voters to elect candidates of their choice.
Given that Marquez’s position on by-district elections directly opposed the city’s position, the city did not represent her in the litigation, forcing Marquez to obtain her own attorney and shoulder $3,834 in legal costs.
Four-year campaign
“For nearly four years, Dr. Marquez has been the target of a series of unlawful and harassing actions by the City Council majority because she supported a transition to district-based elections in the City and spoke out against pay-to-play politics,” said a statement from Marquez’s attorneys. “The Council majority’s unlawful actions culminated in their unlawful suspension of Dr. Marquez’s City Council salary, their discriminatory refusal to indemnify her in litigation, and their insistence that she conduct city business only in writing — a requirement different from all other council members.”
Marquez said the City Council majority ignored her advice and instead decided to pursue “a losing battle against our state’s Voting Rights Act and waste over $1.3 million taxpayer dollars on legal fees.”
“Let me be clear: I will not back down, and I will not be deterred,” Marquez said. “I will continue to call out corruption and work tirelessly to provide the highest quality of service delivery for every resident of Cypress.”
In an email on Thursday, Aug. 22, Mayor Scott Minikus said the city has not been served with the lawsuit and that it would be “premature to provide any substantive response.”
“Nevertheless, the allegations appear to be without merit,” Minikus said. “Rather, they represent yet another effort by someone to blame others for their failure to follow the laws and procedures that apply to all local elected officials.”
