EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – Claims of ethics violations will move forward after independent attorneys allowed the investigation into El Paso Mayor Dee Margo to continue.
As KTSM previously reported, El Paso native and now Dallas attorney Stuart Blaugrund filed an ethics complaint against the Mayor over concerns about the Mayor’s conduct.
This includes concerns about the proposed downtown arena and the sudden resignation last year of former City Attorney Sylvia Firth.
The El Paso Times reported Margo did not disclose how many shares he has in the Borderplex realty trust, which owns buildings downtown.
In a statement, Margo responded, “My investment in Borderplex REIT was disclosed on my financial statements filed with the Texas Ethics Commission. I have not taken any action to promote or support a property within the trust.”
Since the ethics complaint involved an elected official, the city acquired an outside law firm. That firm notified the Mayor in a letter on June 25th that the allegations are within purview of the ethics review commission.
As a result, the city’s ethics review commission can move forward with its investigation.
The special counsel asked the Mayor to respond by filing a sworn statement with the city clerk within seven days. As of Thursday, July 4th, the deadline has passed with no response filed.
However, staff from the Mayor’s office told KTSM, “Mayor Margo has 7 days to respond from the date he formally receives the notice by mail. Due to the Mayors travel schedule, he has yet to receive the notice. Mayor Margo will be filing a statement with the City Clerk upon his return.”
