Kwarsick banned forever from office

It’s official. Former Langley Mayor Larry Kwarsick is disqualified from ever holding public office in the state again.

Island County Judge Alan Hancock issued an order of default and judgment against Kwarsick this week.

Hancock ruled that Kwarsick’s convictions for “knowingly making a false or misleading statement in any officials report or statement while he was the planning director of the City of Langley” constitutes a malfeasance in office.

Under state law, a person guilty of a malfeasance is barred from holding public office, which includes acting as mayor or planning director.

Hancock’s ruling was in response to Island County Prosecutor Greg Banks’ Quo Warranto lawsuit against Kwarsick. Banks started the lawsuit after Kwarsick initially refused to resign as mayor after pleading guilty Dec. 17, 2012 to false report by a public officer.

Kwarsick has since resigned as mayor and on the Coupeville planning director, though he was hired as a temporary basis to help clean up files and assist the transition to a new director for $50 an hour.

Kwarsick was sentenced to 15 days in jail, which he started serving Monday.

Kwarsick has worn many hats on Whidbey Island over the years. He was formerly the Island County public works director and planning director. He ran as a Republican for county commissioner.

Kwarsick was Langley’s contracted planning director when he got into trouble for falsifying documents. He backdated a document related to his stepdaughter’s home construction project to make it look like his predecessor wrote it, then filed it with the city.

The document, which Kwarsick wrote on his home computer to appear to be an official report, improperly removed conditions from the project.

 

Contact South Whidbey Record Staff Reporter Jessie Stensland at jstensland@whidbeynewsgroup.com.

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