City of Sacramento no longer pursuing restraining order against councilwoman’s staffer
The city of Sacramento is no longer seeking a permanent restraining order against a council member’s staffer.
Sacramento Superior Court Judge George A. Acero issued a tentative ruling in Skyler Henry’s favor Friday.
“... the City has failed to present clear and convincing evidence that there is a ‘reasonable probability’ that Henry is a threat of future physical harm to (City Manager Howard) Chan,” the tentative ruling read.
The city accepted the tentative ruling, said City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood. That means the ruling will stand, and a hearing that was scheduled for Monday regarding the permanent restraining order is canceled, said city spokeswoman Jennifer Singer.
During a March episode of progressive podcast “Voices: River City,” Henry said: “You should be terrified for the rest of your life,” referring to Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s performative “thumbs down” vote against the $15 minimum wage in the coronavirus relief package. “You should never be able to leave your house if that is how you’re going to use your position to govern. And like, to me, the same thing sort of applies with the mayor and the city manager of this city (Sacramento).”
Henry was defending a controversial protest held outside Chan’s home in March. In June, after City Councilwoman Katie Valenzuela hired Henry, Chan said in a declaration to the court that comments Henry made on a podcast placed him and his family in jeopardy.
The city announced last month it was seeking the restraining order, which would have prohibited Henry from going within 100 yards of Chan or his family and required Henry to work remotely instead of at City Hall.
A judge last month denied the city’s request for a temporary restraining order. Henry then filed a motion asking a judge to dismiss the city’s petition and seeking monetary damages. The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Northern California joined Henry’s legal team.
“While we accept the court’s ruling, our opinion hasn’t changed — threats of harm toward our employees and their families will never be tolerated by the City of Sacramento, and we will continue to use every tool at our disposal to ensure that all City employees feel safe, secure and protected while doing their jobs,” Alcala Wood said in a statement.
“No one should live in fear because they are a public servant. As we have all witnessed across the country, we live in a time when threatening words can result in violent actions toward employees and others. As an employer, we must take these matters very seriously. We cannot and will not allow this ugliness to be part of the work life of any of our employees. Sacramento is better than this.”
Henry said in a statement: “I’m really excited that the judge saw things our way and came down in our favor. This was always a lot larger than myself, and to that end I hope everyone who believes in justice, balance, and honest representation will join me in raising a glass tonight. With all of this behind us, I look forward to getting back to work and fighting hard to serve the people of Sacramento.”
