Exclusive: Did Tourk Receive Preferential Treatment?

Feb. 15 - KGO (KGO) -- There are serious, new questions about whether the staffer who had an affair with San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom got preferential treatment. The ABC7 News I-Team has obtained public records that shed new light on the City Hall sex scandal.

The city attorney's office is investigating payments to Newsom's former appointments secretary, Ruby Tourk, and whether they were proper.

The city's attorney's office is reviewing Ruby Rippey-Tourk's salary history, especially for calendar year 2006. She resigned in July of last year after an affair with Mayor Gavin Newsom. Rippey-Tourk is the wife of Newsom's close friend and former campaign manager, Alex Tourk.

Rippey-Tourk's pay records obtained by the I-Team today show that during 2006 she never worked the normal 80 hours in a two-week pay period, and that she was allowed to take about half her time in paid leave.

That raises questions for the chairman of the Board of Supervisor's Budget Finance Committee.

Chris Daly, San Francisco Supervisor: "I'm very concerned about the taxpayers' money and you want to make sure that when we spend money for salaries, that the work is being done and it's being done as effectively as possible."

Bill Whalen, Political Analyst, Hoover Institution: "This is about professional management, it's about government ethics, and it's about frankly, political favoritism and maybe cronyism."

This political analyst from the Hoover Institution is especially concerned about a ten-week unpaid leave Rippey-Tourk took last summer. After she resigned, the mayor's office changed the unpaid leave to a paid leave. and cut Rippey-Tourk a $10,000 dollar check.

Bill Whalen: "Most of us don't have the kind of job which says take ten weeks off and you get paid for it. Most people take unpaid leave when they do this sort of thing. She got paid for it, so that that raises alarms and when there's a personal relationship involved like this, it raises even more alarms."

Late today, we spoke with Monique Zmuda of the controller's office, who has looked into Rippey-Tourk's history at City Hall.

ABC7's Dan Noyes: "So what did you find, what's the bottom line on what you found?"

Monique Zmuda, San Francisco's Controller's Office: "We found that the employee was eligible for leave, both paid leave and unpaid leave and that she was paid appropriately based on that."

The city attorney isn't so sure -- that's why he's reviewing all the records.

Another question -- the I-Team confirmed Rippey-Tourk started working at Benefit Magazine in May, and continued to be paid by the city through September of last year.

The documents obtained by the I-Team reveal another twist in the City Hall sex scandal. Several months after the affair between Newsom and Rippey-Tourk began, they attended a mandatory sexual harassment seminar with Rippey-Tourk's husband. From the course manual, Mayor Newsom learned, "I will be a role model and examine my own conduct to ensure that I am setting the standard for a respectful workplace." He also received "some practical tips" -- "respect the personal space of others" and "do not touch subordinates."

Late today we got reaction to the story from Mayor Gavin Newsom.

Mayor Gavin Newsom, San Francisco: "I have absolute confidence that everything was done above board. In fact, I've been assured of that by the people that were involved. It's a personnel matter, so you gotta be sensitive to that. There are strong legal issues and ethics issues associated, but I think that everybody's going to discover what I know and what others know -- that everything was done appropriately."

ABC7's Dan Noyes: "No preferential treatment, mayor?"

Mayor Gavin Newsom: "Not a chance."

We also contacted Ruby Tourk's spokesman. He explained the $10,000 dollar check this way -- that two city employees donated their time, that's why Ruby Tourk got that $10,000 dollars. He declined to name those two city employees.

Also, late today, the mayor's office released Ruby Tourk's timesheets from last year. We'll be going over these as well.

MORE ON THIS STORY:

>> Ruby Tourk's letter of resignation sent in July of 2006
>> "How To Identify And Prevent Workplace Harassment" certificate given to Mayor Newsom in November of 2005

>> I-TEAM BLOG: Tourk's Paid Leave (2/15)
>> I-TEAM BLOG: Day of Bombshells (2/1)

>> Should Aide Who Resigned Still Get Paid? (2/5)
>> Newsom Apologizes; So What's Next For The Mayor? (2/1)
>> Aide Says His Wife, Mayor Had Affair (1/31)

>> VIDEO: Ruby Tourk's appearance on "The View from the Bay"

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