Heggemeier responds to allegations, criticism

Editor’s Note: Because of the constancy and severity of the accusations levied against Mr. Heggemeier via Post-Register Letters to the Editor in recent weeks, it was the decision of our Publisher and Editorial Board to run Mr. Heggemeier’s response to those allegations in its full, unedited form. Because Mr. Heggemeier is responding as an individual citizen rather than

in a professional capacity, we deemed it inappropriate to publish his response as a “Guest Column,” and therefore have published it as a “Letter to the Editor,” despite the fact that it does not meet our usual guidelines for “Letters.” -kb

To the Editor:

This is a response to Ms. Susan Modrall’s public forum letter (Jan. 6, 2012) entitled “All that glitters is not gold.” The title of this response is, “Everything that flows out of the mouth or pen of Ms. Modrall is not true.”

For the last several months Ms. Modrall has repeatedly tried to attack most any action taken by the Commissioners Court, and has attacked me as well in Commissioner Court meetings. In most all of these rants, Ms. Modrall sees giant conspiracies from Agenda 21 to regionalism overtaking Caldwell County. Now, Ms. Modrall has decided to attack me personally in the newspaper because I was appointed as the County Administrator.

Ms. Modrall’s pattern is to misstate facts, leave out facts, use innuendos and use any tactic or deception she can think of to mold a story in the way she perceives it to be for her own purposes. My father (a Methodist minister) taught me that using deception is the same thing as lying. His favorite saying was “Oh what webs we weave when we practice to deceive.”

A lie is defined as something meant to deceive or give a wrong impression or stating something to convey a false image or impression.

Now, to the webs Ms. Modrall attempted to weave against me in her newspaper article. Ms. Modrall tried to tell you that when I was a Mayor in Kansas (some 34 years ago) that a recall was filed against me for some “misconducts” I was accused of and that somehow a DA was involved but didn’t take any action.

FACTS Ms. Modrall lied about and failed to tell you about the recall attempt:

1. There was no DA ever involved in the illegal (against the law) recall filed against me. The exact quote by Ms. Modrall was, “[t]he petition was denied by the DA on the grounds that the misconducts cited were not specific enough.” I believe that the reason Ms. Modrall invokes the term DA is to try to persuade you that something criminal was involved and the DA just didn’t quite have enough against me. This innuendo is absolutely false. Her statement that a DA was involved is a total fabrication (a lie). Ms. Modrall wants you to believe that a DA failed to take action. This is her deception. She fails to tell you that a District Court Judge threw out the recall. God help us if Ms. Modrall and her followers do not know the difference between a District Court Judge and a District Attorney. One obviously is a prosecutor and the other decides the facts of a case as they relate to the law. One wears a black robe and one does not.

2. I challenge Ms. Modrall to produce any newspaper article that ever mentions that a DA was involved in the attempted recall against me. There was no such office (DA) in our city or county yet this fact eludes Ms. Modrall. Additionally, any petition for a recall states grounds for the recall not misconducts as she alleges. But, as you might guess by now, Ms. Modrall likes the word misconducts because it makes it more sinister for her purposes.

3. The only finding of misdeeds was against the recall group. The District Court Judge who decided this case not only dismissed the recall attempt, but praised the actions that I took as Mayor in a very strongly-worded written opinion. Ms. Modrall failed to give you these facts because it wouldn’t fit her story line. Any statement that I committed any misdeed or misconduct is completely false – a deception – a lie.

4. The facts are that the town’s police chief secretly set up a SWAT team (complete with snipers) when I had ordered him not to do so. Furthermore, he lied about it and when I discovered that the police chief had in fact set up a SWAT team I immediately fired the police chief. The supporters of the police chief started a recall petition based on my actions of firing the police chief.

In his written ruling the District Judge stated it was my duty to take the action I took and that if I had failed to take such action then I would not have been performing my duty as Mayor and head of law enforcement for our town.

Even though I paid for a full-page ad to print the Judge’s decision Ms. Modrall’s research couldn’t seem to turn up the Judge‘s decision. To give you, the readers, all of the facts appears to be beyond Ms. Modrall’s abilities, honesty or purpose.

The next thing in Ms. Modrall’s public forum letter concerns a land development I processed in Colorado.

FACTS  Ms. Modrall  lied about and failed to tell you about concerning the development project:

Ms. Modrall states that I was guilty of “questionable behavior” concerning this development. Her exact quote was “[A]dd to this, the questionable behavior that ensued when Mr. Heggemeier, (now a subdivision developer building 5,466 new homes in Parker, Colo.), was cast into the center of controversy when he pushed his land development on the people in Parker.”

1. This statement is a complete lie. She never tells you what this purported questionable behavior was and gets to this conclusion by stating that the development was controversial. Nothing, I repeat nothing, in the article she refers to mentions “questionable behavior.” Because the development was controversial she concludes there was “questionable behavior.” Most any large development processed in Colorado can be described as controversial (too many Californians have moved to Colorado). I never committed any questionable behavior concerning this development. Again a deception, and another lie by Ms. Modrall.

2. Ms. Modrall states that  this development project was in Parker, Colo., and contained 5,466 homes. This is another fabrication. The project was not in Parker, but was in fact located in another county. The project was approved for 3,200 lots, not 5,466. Furthermore, I was not a builder, but instead simply got the development lots approved for future building.

3. Ms. Modrall fails to tell you that this project was approved unanimously by the Board of County Commissioners. If Ms. Modrall told you this fact, it would not fit her deception and innuendo of some kind of questionable behavior on my part. I processed many developments in this county, all of which were approved. She also states I am currently involved with this project. For the record, I sold all of my interest in land developments in Colorado in 2007. Again, Ms. Modrall will never let facts get in her way when she wants to malign your character.

4. Ms. Modrall fails to tell you that I was a real estate attorney in Colorado since 1989 and processed many developments all over the State of Colorado. I had many real estate development clients throughout my career and am still licensed to practice law in Colorado – inactive status).

Once Ms. Modrall completed her character assignations against me she then went on to question whether the current DA, Trey Hicks, failed to check me out before he hired me and whether County Judge Tom Bonn failed to check me out prior to my appointment as County Administrator. Ms. Modrall lied about my background and then tries to attack the current DA and County Judge for not properly vetting me. Gee, what do think her motive is?

Ms. Modrall wants you to believe that the current DA, Trey Hicks,  fails to do background checks on the attorneys he hires as Assistant DA’s. Once again, nothing could be further from the truth but this never seems to bother Ms. Modrall. Ms. Modrall never likes facts to get in her way. Ask her if she ever checked with DA Trey Hicks to see if he checked my background prior to hiring me as an Assistant District Attorney. What you will find out is that she just didn’t need to do this before attacking me, the DA and the County Judge.

Again, Ms. Modrall would never want to let facts get in her way.

Ms. Modrall fails to tell you that I am also licensed as an attorney in Texas along with Colorado, and that no disciplinary action has ever been taken against me by the State Bar of Texas or the State Bar of Colorado. This fact eludes Ms. Modrall, as she alone would like to be the arbitrator of my career based on her own fabrications, lies, deceptions and innuendos. Being a small town Mayor and a real estate attorney/developer seem to be evil, sinister or criminal acts to Ms. Modrall.

Ms. Modrall has taken the last shot at me without a response. I will no longer tolerate her or her follower’s attacks and sit idly by while they practice character assignation against me.

Ms. Modrall has every right to argue against policies adopted by the Commissioners Court or other elected officials. She has no right to make personal attacks against me or any other County employee. We are public servants not elected officials.

Ron Heggemeier