‘Wasilla has an alcohol problem’

WASILLA — An early morning DUI arrest Wednesday that led to the resignation of the city’s Recreation and Cultural Services manager is the latest of what’s becoming a laundry list of alcohol-related incidents involving Wasilla elected officials and city employees.

John C. Combs, 62, was allegedly driving drunk when he was pulled over by Alaska State Troopers at 12:01 a.m., Wednesday, according to an AST report. Combs was observed driving erratically, was stopped and arrested for driving under the influence and held on $500 bail. He was released after posting bail later Wednesday.

Mayor Verne Rupright said Wednesday afternoon he had suspended Combs without pay pending a city investigation into the incident, but about two hours later, he said Combs came to his office and resigned.

Rupright said the incident began when Combs was seen drinking while working during the Tuesday Night Fights series at the Curtis D. Menard Memorial Sports Center. In his capacity with the city, Combs oversaw the sports center as well as the Wasilla library and museum.

Combs declined to comment when contacted by the Frontiersman.

Combs’ arrest and resignation comes less than five months after a longtime Wasilla police officer tendered his resignation following an Anchorage DUI arrest, and seven months removed for the DUI arrest of a former Wasilla city councilman. Since 2011, the city has had at least five publicized alcohol-related events or allegations involving elected officials and employees.

That’s a sobering statistic, said Councilwoman Dianne Woodruff. “That’s very concerning. I think it says Wasilla has an alcohol problem.”

Rupright was the subject of a Report Every Dangerous Driver Immediately (REDDI) report in January 2011, a report he vigorously defended himself against and which was subsequently not verified.

In February 2012, city voters recalled former councilman Steve Menard. That move was sparked by his behavior several months prior while attending Alaska Municipal League meetings in Sitka. Wasilla voters later recalled him from office due to the incident.

Earlier this year on March 7, former Councilman Steve Lovell was arrested for DUI. He died June 30 in an unrelated heavy equipment accident.

In the latest incident before Combs’ arrest, Wasilla police Lt. Jean Achee was arrested May 28 and charged with DUI after being stopped in Anchorage. He blew a .170 blood alcohol content, more than twice the legal limit of .08. A 20-year veteran of the Wasilla Police Department, Achee took an early retirement.

These events are giving Wasilla a bad reputation, Woodruff said, one she hopes can improve over time.

“We had a police officer who gets tagged with a DUI and retires earlier than intended and, sadly, sullying his reputation and his record,” she said. “I don’t think our reputation now is a good one. I certainly think it’s unfortunate.”

A two-time councilwoman, Woodruff was prevented by term limits from running for re-election in last week’s contest, and Monday will be her last day on the council. She said she hopes the council will use Combs’ arrest and resignation as a catalyst to examine whether the sports center should host events where alcohol is served.

“I think it’s time for us to sit down and ask what do we really want there as a community,” she said. “I think it is time to examine that and take a serious look at it. I honestly think, and this is my own personal bias, but what kind of message do we send our kids that we always have to have booze? Do they get the message they have to have booze to have fun?”

Rupright said Wednesday that Combs’ blood alcohol content was found to be .06 and that he was subsequently released. Troopers report Combs was actually arrested and charged with DUI. Mat-Su Pre-Trial records confirm he was held there and later released after his bail was paid.

Megan Peters, a spokeswoman for the Alaska State Troopers, said she hasn’t seen all the documentation in Combs’ case, but said it’s not unusual to charge someone who blows lower than the .08 legal standard if he or she exhibits other signs of being impaired.

“It’s one component that goes into the tool of reasons,” she said of the blood alcohol content test. Whether those components are enough to move a case forward in the court system is something for prosecutors to decide, she said.

The mayor said the rash of incidents shouldn’t be considered as a whole, as Menard’s and Lovell’s were elected officials and not city employees.

“I look at it this way. The council has to speak for its own issues,” he said. “As far as the administration, you can’t speak for stupid, and you have two people out of (more than 140 city employees), and it’s about 1 percent. It’s not good, but does it stop the world? I cannot go out anymore than you could and determine out of all of these employees which ones are going to trip up. Achee was a cop for 20 years and had never been in trouble. And John, as far as I know, had never been in trouble before either.”

Rupright said the real issue for him is that city policy is very clear about drinking on the job, and that’s why he suspended Combs while an internal investigation was initiated.

“It would be one thing if he was there not on duty as a spectator, … but those lines have to be clearly defined,” the mayor said. “In this case, John was up there with his other staff members, he imbibed enough to get him called in and pulled over.”

Combs began his job as Wasilla’s manager of Recreation and Cultural Services on April 2, 2012. He’s also a former Palmer City Council member and two-term Palmer mayor who left that office in October 2010.

The city of Wasilla hired Combs at an annual salary of $88,977, and according to the city’s standard salary structure, would have be earning between $93,553 and $95,952 at the time of his resignation.

Although managing city staff falls under the prevue of the mayor, Wasilla City Councilman Brandon Wall said he is disappointed to hear about an incident that could reflect poorly on the city.

“Wow,” he said Wednesday when he learned of the suspension. “I don’t even know what to say to this, especially when you’re supposed to be working. Having a couple of drinks just seems (bad). It’s very disappointing to see one of the department heads acting in a manner that’s unprofessional and brings more shame and disruption to the city. It blows my mind.”

Contact Greg Johnson at 352-2269 or greg.johnson@frontiersman.com.