Filner apparently still in harassment mediation, not at City Hall

SAN DIEGO -- With reporters camped outside City Hall waiting to see if Mayor Bob Filner returns to work, Filner apparently instead was in a second day of mediation Tuesday to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit against him.

The mediation, overseen by retired U.S. District Judge J. Lawrence Irving, is underway at a downtown office building several blocks from City Hall.

At Irving’s order, none of the participants would discuss details of the mediation, specifically whether one condition for settling the lawsuit by Filner’s former director of communications Irene McCormack Jackson is that Filner resign.

Another issue in the mediation could be money. The City Council has refused to pay Filner’s legal bills and threatened to sue him if the city is forced to make a payment as part of the lawsuit, which names both Filner and the city as defendants.

In attendance are Filner’s lawyers, City Atty. Jan Goldsmith, and City Council President Todd Gloria and President Pro-Tem Kevin Faulconer. Filner was seen arriving at the building’s underground garage in a window-tinted vehicle used by his San Diego police security detail.

Gloria Allred, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of Jackson, was not present but apparently available by telephone.

When he announced July 26 that he would undergo two weeks of therapy, Filner promised he would return to City Hall on Aug. 19, ready to resume his mayoral duties.

All nine City Council members have called on Filner to resign. Allred has joined in that call.

“When it’s national news if your mayor is going to show up for work,” said Faulconer, “you know your city has a problem.”

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