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Perhaps Ward 3 Councilmember Mary Cheh is still smarting from charges that her initial report on the hiring practices of Mayor Vince Gray‘s administration was a “whitewash.”
Cheh’s office just announced that she’s seeking subpoena power so that she’ll have the ability to compel reluctant witnesses to testify (read, former chief of staff Gerri Mason Hall) at her March 28th hearing on “executive personnel practices.”
“Up to this point, the committee has received the full cooperation of the executive and I continue to expect that the committee will not be called on to use all of its investigative powers,” says Cheh in a statement. “Nevertheless, there are witnesses who have been invited to testify who are not employed by the District government, and who may be unwilling to appear before the committee without a subpoena. As such, I want to preserve the option of using subpoenas should that become necessary.”
Cheh’s hearing, by the way, is the same day as Gray’s State of the District speech. Oh, and former Mayor Adrian Fenty‘s campaign strategist Ron Moten will be offering a rebuttal speech that night.
Update: Here’s a list of witnesses Cheh wants to testify: Gray campaign and transition chairwoman Lorraine Green; former chief of staff Gerri Mason Hall; interim H.R. director Judy Banks; former Department of Health Care Finance chief of staff Talib Karim; former DHCF auditor Sulaimon Brown; Gray campaign aide accused of giving Brown cash payments, Howard Brooks; DCHF Director Wayne Turnage; Inspector General Charles Willoughby; and representatives from the headhunting firm and private investigator firm that worked for the Gray transition.