Community Commentary -- Ila Johnson

School board trustee Jim Ferryman, after pleading guilty to charges of

drunk driving, still has not really faced squarely up to what he did. He

still insists that the potentially violent crime of driving under the

influence is a personal matter (“Trustee pleads guilty to DUI charge,”

Jan. 8). Indeed. No, on the contrary, it is a very public matter that

seriously affects every member of the community.

Not only did he place every person on the road at the time in harm’s

way, and in danger of serious injury or even death, his arrest and

subsequent court hearings were paid for by taxpayers, thank you very

much.

I hardly think that the “standard” nominal fine of $1,241 covers the cost of the dispatch of arresting officers, booking procedures, two days

in jail, court costs and three months of an alcohol treatment program.

The costs are compounded by the inestimable damage to the community and

the district in terms of the resultant division, distraction and

diversion of time and energy on the part of all concerned.

The “personal matter” spin on Ferryman’s part and on that of President

Judy Franco, who called the circumstances surrounding the incident “his

own personal issues,” indicates a denial of the seriousness of the

offense and a total lack of understanding of the remedy for the problem.

Ferryman may think he has faced “squarely up” to what he did. This reader

respectfully contends that he has not and will not until he acknowledges

that driving under the influence is most definitely not a “personal

matter” and that his action has caused him to be unfit to serve in the

position of school board trustee.

This is so not only because it makes him a poor role model, but

because it violates not only the law but also the California School Board

Assn.’s Professional Governance Standards regarding the individual

trustee.

Those standards state that the individual trustee “acts with dignity,

and understands the implications of demeanor and behavior.” The standards

were approved by a resolution adopted by the Newport-Mesa Unified Board

of Education on July 10.

Clearly, Ferryman does not understand the implications of his

behavior, lack of dignity and poor demeanor, and those of the serious

crime of driving an automobile on public streets while heavily under the

influence of alcohol.

Neither, so it seems, do the majority of the other board members. How

can anyone with such a serious lack of understanding, and who makes such

a profoundly bad decision as to put others at risk by getting behind the

wheel of a motor vehicle while in a seriously impaired condition, be

trusted with making good decisions in other areas, in particular those

that ultimately affect the schoolchildren of the district?

The answer, my friends, is he cannot, and sadly he does not have the

good judgment to recognize it.

* ILA JOHNSON is a Costa Mesa resident who ran for a seat on the

school board in November 2000.