The Lassen County District Attorney’s Office wants to review public records generated by the Lassen Municipal Utility District. According to a letter from Bob Burns, Lassen County’s district attorney, to Wayne Langston, chairman of the LMUD Board of Directors, “This office has recently begun an investigation into the activities of the Lassen Municipal Utilities District and its General Manger, Mr. Frank Cady. This investigation includes, but is not limited to, allegations of a violation of the Ralph M. Brown Act and other violations of the California Penal Code.”

Burns wrote he is requesting the information from Langston pursuant to the Public Records Act rather than executing a search warrant to obtain “a full and complete copy” of the documents.

According to Burns’ letter, the district attorney’s office seeks information regarding complaints or allegations made against Cady and presented to the board in closed-session meetings in September or October.

The district attorney’s office also seeks copies of any investigative reports, including notes of the investigator detailing witness statements and any statements made by Cady.

In addition, the district attorney’s office seeks any memoranda, correspondence or writing of any sort detailing any corrective action, discipline or any other action the board took in response to such an investigative report and allegations.

Citing a an employee’s right to privacy, the LMUD board members have declined to comment on any of these issues, but Burns said the public’s right to know what’s occurring at the publicly-owned utility district outweighs Cady’s right to privacy.

Langston said he was encouraged by the investigation because he already knew the outcome.

“The district attorney can do a lot of things the board can’t do,” Langston said. “We took an oath to respect the privacy of our employees.”