Ochser files Notice of Claim against City of Sedona

By Tommy Acosta

SEDONA, AZ (June 30, 2009) - Dark Skies proponent Cliff Ochser has filed a Notice of Claim against the City of Sedona seeking $25,000 in damages he claims he suffered because of criminal proceedings taken against him by City Attorney Mike Goimarac on behalf of the city over an alleged-threatening letter Mr. Ochser sent exposing a mayoral candidate’s sexual solicitations.

Ochser’s Claim, filed June 19, 2009 by Phoenix attorney Joel B. Robbins raises the question of a conspiracy by the city attorney with others to prosecute him in order to “benefit the campaign of Pud Colquitt.” The Claim also accuses the city attorney of “malicious prosecution.”

The Claim also accuses the city attorney of releasing the charges against Mr. Ochser to a local newspaper which printed them before he received the summons.

On April 9, 2008, charges were filed by the city attorney alleging Mr. Ochser wrote an anonymous letter to Mathew Turner, a mayoral candidate at the time, urging him to drop out of the mayoral race -- or Turner’s solicitation of sex on the internet would be revealed.

The complaint charged that violations were made under the Arizona Revised Statutes 13-3004, 13-707, 13-802, 12-116 and 13-2921.

In the first count, the complaint charged that on or about January 12, 2008, Mr. Ochser sent or delivered a letter to former Sedona mayoral candidate Matthew Turner, threatening "to expose or publish his failings or infirmities" (a class 2 misdemeanor).

In the second count, the complaint charged that Mr. Ochser's anonymous letter to Matthew Turner was harassment (a class 1 misdemeanor).

All charges against Cliff Ochser were dismissed by Jan 2009, thus avoiding what would have been a sensational trial where the prosecution would have had to prove beyond reasonable doubt Mr. Ochser’s letter to former Mayoral candidate Matthew Turner was threatening, amidst revelations Mr. Turner solicited sex and posted nude photos of himself on the internet.

Mr. Ochser said he believed the charges filed against him at that time were politically motivated because of his support for Mayor Rob Adams, also a candidate for mayor at that time running against incumbent Colquitt and Mr. Turner.

He believes the case against him was driven by elements in the city hoping to use the charges against him as a means of discrediting him and Adams through association.

Mayor Adams beat incumbent Colquitt by four votes in that election

In his Claim, Ochser asks “The questions on this issue becomes why did the city attorney provide a copy of the summons to the local newspaper before Mr. Ochser was even aware that he was being charged? Why did the city attorney move forward filing charges after the Sedona Police Department did not recommend prosecution? Did the city attorney have conversations with the incumbent mayor and the city manager about the benefit of prosecution to influence the voting public by continuing to intimate that Mr. Adams was behind the letter, even after the Sedona Police Department determined that not to be the case? Was there a conspiracy to prosecute Ochser to benefit the campaign of Pud Colquitt, the incumbent mayor?”

Mr. Ochser asserts there was.

“I am doing this because I was damaged by the malicious behavior of the City,” he said.

Mr. Ochser said a Notice Of Claim first needs to be filed and sent the mayor, who through the council, has 60 days to respond before a lawsuit is filed.

Mayor Rob Adams said he received the Notice Of Claim but did not want to speak about it.

“At this time I do not wish to comment on this,” he said. “Do note no lawsuit has yet been filed.”

City Attorney Mike Goimarac also refused to comment. Because he is named in it, he will have to excuse himself from handling the Notice of Claim for the council.

“I cannot comment on this directly,” he said. “But because I am named in it I will not be advising the council on this matter.”

Mr. Ochser said it took a while after the last of the charges were dropped against him, for him to regain composure and proceed to seek damages.

“I waited several months to heal from the ordeal and decided that the city should be held accountable for improper prosecution,” he said.

He said not only did he suffer financially from the prosecution, losing several prominent resort clients for his business, but emotionally as well.

“Isn’t everyone who is falsely charged with a crime and plastered on the front page of a newspaper emotionally hurt?” he asks.

He said despite his ordeal, he has not lost faith in Sedona.

“I have faith that people in Sedona will stand up when wrong things happen,” he said. “In particular, when people are used and maliciously used as an example for political benefit, people need to stand up and hold those liable to account. I love Sedona.”

He said Mr. Turner had to be exposed for his conduct in order to protect the city.

“Mr. Turner was not conducting himself in an appropriate way and would have embarrassed the City of Sedona had he been elected,” he said. “It is completely inappropriate for a candidate for Mayor to publish explicit ads on the internet soliciting sex and to use his charity 501 c 3 to support his political campaign. Both of which were proven true.”

He said if he could go back in time there is one thing he would have done differently.

“I would have signed my name to the letter that I wrote to Mr. Turner,” he said.

Additional Info: Cliff Ocsher Notice of Claim