Community Corner
AGENDA - San Bruno City Council - SPECIAL MEETING 2/19/2019
Staff recommends that Anh Espinosa's 2017 work permit application for Artichoke Joe's Casino be denied and revoked immediately
Article Source: City of San Bruno CA
AGENDA - SAN BRUNO CITY COUNCIL - SPECIAL MEETING
February 19, 2019
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5:30 p.m.
Meeting Location: San Bruno City Hall, 567 El Camino Real, Conference Room 115
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San Bruno, CA
City Council meetings are conducted in accordance with Roberts Rules of Order Newly Revised and City Council Rules of Procedure. All regular Council meetings are recorded and televised on CATV Channel 1 and replayed the following Thursday, at 2:00 pm. Recordings of the City Council meetings are available for listening at the City Clerk's Office and video of the City Council meetings may be viewed at www.sanbruno.ca.gov. Audio CDs with recordings of City Council meetings may be purchased at the City Clerk’s office, or may be listened to at the San Bruno Library. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, individuals requiring reasonable accommodations or appropriate alternative formats for notices, agendas and records for this meeting should notify us 48 hours prior to meeting. Please call the City Clerk’s Office 650-616-7061, or email your request to Melissa Thurman, City Clerk at mthurman@sanbruno.ca.gov.
1. CALL TO ORDER
2. ROLL CALL
3. PUBLIC COMMENT ON ITEMS NOT ON AGENDA
Individuals allowed three minutes, groups in attendance, five minutes. It is the Council's policy to refer matters raised in this forum to staff for investigation and/or action where appropriate. The Brown Act prohibits the Council from discussing or acting upon any matter not agendized pursuant to State Law.
4. a. Appeal From Denial of Application of Cardroom Work Permit
BACKGROUND:
DATE: February 19, 2019
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
FROM: Lance Bayer, Special Counsel
PREPARED BY: Lance Bayer, Special Counsel
SUBJECT: Appeal From Denial of Application of Cardroom Work Permit
BACKGROUND:
Anh Espinosa originally was granted a cardroom work permit as a dealer for Artichoke Joe's Casino in June of 2011. Her work permit was renewed in 2013 and 2015. In April of 2017, Ms. Espinosa again applied for renewal of her work permit. Ms. Espinosa was arrested in April of 2018, but the San Bruno Police Department did not become aware of the arrest until November of 2018, when she was arrested on a warrant stemming from that arrest.
The San Bruno Police Department investigated and reviewed Ms. Espinosa’s conduct
resulting in the April of 2018 arrest and has determined that her conduct constituted the commission of a felony and involved acts of dishonesty and moral turpitude.
On December 10, 2018, San Bruno Police Chief Ed Barberini notified Ms. Espinosa in writing of the denial of renewal of her cardroom work permit. (Attachment 1) On December 18, 2018, Ms. Espinosa, through her husband, submitted an email appeal of Chief Barberini’s decision. (Attachment 2)
DISCUSSION:
Anh Espinosa is a dealer at Artichoke Joe's Casino and has been employed for approximately seven years. On April 13, 2017, Ms. Espinosa applied for a renewal of her cardroom work permit as a dealer. (Attachment 3) The expiration date on the application is July 28, 2021. Although the City did not issue the renewal or act on her application, Ms. Espinosa continued to work as a dealer.
On October 21, 2018, Artichoke Joe’s Security Manager Anup Kumar informed Commander Geoff Caldwell of the San Bruno Police Department that an employee of
Artichoke Joe's, Anh Espinosa, had been arrested at the casino on that date by the Daly
City Police Department. According to Daly City Police Department report #18007559, Ms. Espinosa had an outstanding warrant for her arrest stemming from a California Highway Patrol investigation. The warrant was for violations of Penal Code section 529 - False Impersonation of Another, California Vehicle Code sections 23152(a & b) - Driving Under the Influence, and California Vehicle Code section 12500(a) - Unlicensed Driver.
California Highway Patrol incident report #F131-340-01800 states that, on April 13, 2018, at 11:30 p.m., a highway patrol officer conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle that Ms. Espinosa was driving. Based on observations of her driving and her poor performances on the field sobriety tests, Ms. Espinosa was arrested for driving under the influence of an alcoholic beverage. On the night of the incident, Ms. Espinosa did not possess a valid California driver’s license and she did not identify herself with her true name. Instead, she identified herself to the officer as Ngoc Phi Nguyen with a date of birth of August 4, 1980 and California Driver License number B8871818. She provided the officer with the license number from memory. In fact, Ms. Espinosa provided the officer with the name, date of birth, and license number of her sister.
According to the incident report, on April 20, 2018 at 2030 hours, the arresting officer returned a phone call from Gene Espinosa, Ms. Espinosa’s husband, who was the passenger in the car the night of her DUI arrest. Mr. Espinosa informed the officer that the name, date of birth, and California driver’s license number that his wife had provided the night of her arrest actually belonged to her sister. He provided his Ms. Espinosa’s real name and date of birth. Later that evening, the officer spoke with Ms. Espinosa and she confirmed that she lied about her identity when she was arrested. She told the officer the reason she had done this was because she was "drunk and afraid".
Commander Caldwell spoke with Ms. Espinosa at Artichoke Joe's on November 15, 2018. Ms. Espinosa told Commander Caldwell that she had lied to the officer and provided the officer with her sister's name and date of birth. She said she called the officer and spoke with the officer approximately one week later and told him that she had lied to him about her identity at the time of her arrest. [According to the CHP incident report, Ms. Espinosa’s husband actually contacted the CHP officer.] Ms. Espinosa told Commander Caldwell that she didn't know she was supposed to inform the San Bruno Police Department about her arrest for DUI. She said she was sorry and that she understood the consequences of her actions.
San Bruno Municipal Code section 4.36.110 - Work permits - Denial of application, states, in part, as follows:
B. The chief of police may deny the application for a work permit if he or she makes any of the following determinations:
1. That the applicant has within ten years immediately preceding the filing of the application been convicted in a court of competent jurisdiction of an offense enumerated in Section 4.36.065, or has engaged in conduct constituting any such offense.
San Bruno Municipal Code section 4.36.065 Application - Discretionary denial states, in part, as follows:
The chief of police may deny the application for a gambling club license if he or she makes any of the following determinations:
- That the applicant, or any present or proposed manager or designated responsible employee of the applicant, or any person who has a financial interest in the applicant within ten years immediately preceding the filing of the application has engaged in conduct constituting, or has been convicted of, any of the following offenses:
- That the applicant, or any present or proposed manager or designated responsible employee of the applicant, or any person who has a financial interest in the applicant has done any act involving dishonesty, moral turpitude, fraud, or deceit with the intent to substantially benefit himself or herself or another, or substantially injure another;
5. Any offense involving theft, embezzlement, or moral turpitude,
Because Ms. Espinosa had applied for and was previously issued a cardroom work permit that was renewed, Chief Barberini’s denial of the application also falls within the denial of renewal provisions of the San Bruno Municipal Code.
San Bruno Municipal Code section 4.36.140 Revocation and suspension of licenses and work permits states as follows:
C. Licenses and work permits are subject to revocation or suspension upon a determination by the chief of police that grounds exist which would justify the denial of an application for such license or work permit if such application were then pending, or that the licensee or a person that has a financial interest in the licensee has:
3. Been convicted of, or has engaged in conduct constituting an offense enumerated in SBMC Section 4.36.060
San Bruno Municipal Code 4.36.060 Application-Mandatory denial, states as follows:
The chief of police shall deny the application for a gambling club license if he or she makes any of the following determinations:
B. That the applicant has been convicted for any crime punishable as a
C. That the applicant has been convicted for any misdemeanor involving dishonesty or moral turpitude within the ten-year period immediately preceding the submission of the application, unless the applicant has been granted relief pursuant to Section 1203.4, 1203.4a, or 1203.45 of the Penal Code
Ms. Espinosa’s conduct as detailed in the CHP report constitutes an offense described in SBMC 4.36.060 and comes within the provisions of section 4.36.065. A violation of Penal Code section 529 is a felony and is also a crime of dishonesty and moral turpitude. Significantly, the offense as alleged against Ms. Espinosa in the incident report involves deceptive behavior which, unless corrected, potentially placed Ms. Espinosa’s sister in danger of being arrested for an offense which she did not commit. This conduct constitutes grounds for both denial of application and revocation of Ms. Espinosa’s work permit.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that Anh Espinosa's 2017 work permit application for Artichoke Joe's Casino be denied and revoked immediately per SBMC 4.36.140.
RECOMMENDED FINDINGS OF FACT:
1. On April 13, 2018, Anh Espinosa committed a violation of Penal Code section 529, a felony and a crime involving dishonesty and moral turpitude.
RECOMMENDED DETERMINATIONS:
- Anh Espinosa's 2017 work permit application for Artichoke Joe's Casino be denied and revoked immediately per SBMC 4.36.140 based on the findings of fact.
- Anh Espinosa’s appeal is denied.
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b. Receive Presentation on Various Revenue Enhancements, Current Revenue Initiatives and a Community Priority Survey
5. ADJOURNMENT:
The next Regular City Council Meeting will be held on February 26, 2019 at 7:00 p.m. at the Senior Center, 1555 Crystal Springs Road, San Bruno.
Photo Credit: San Bruno CA Patch Archives
Source Credit: City of San Bruno CA
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