Peoria Mayor Jason Beck has ended his silence over the city council's request for Vice Mayor Denette Dunn to resign, accusing her of trying to cover up her involvement with a family friend who is a sex offender, convicted of crimes 40 years ago.
Derek Karl Lawson, 63, was not registered as a sex offender at the time he had taken residence at her home, but has since registered, according to a report from Peoria Police.
Dunn said she has formally filed a complaint with the Arizona Attorney General’s office for an open meeting law violation, which she claims Beck committed in his attempt to hold an executive session regarding her council seat.
Beck submitted a letter to the Peoria Independent Oct. 10, stating he asked her to resign from the council after he discovered Lawson had taken residence at her house and was not registered with the state as a sex offender, which is required by law. Lawson's mother for a time lived with Dunn.
In the letter, Beck stated he believed this was a breach of public trust and public safety, and that elected officials in a position of authority and trust need to be transparent with the public and keep public safety the top priority.
"I warned Denette that she had not been in compliance with the law, that the purpose of the registry was for sex offenders to be registered to where they were living to notify neighbors for their safety, that she had a responsibility to comply with the law and notify the neighbors," he stated in the letter.
Beck asked Dunn to resign from her council seat because of the situation. Then he said that Dunn asked him to cover it up.
"She told me she was going to resign from her boards and commissions but did not want to resign from office. I did not think that was sufficient," he stated. "She then asked me to do the unthinkable, she asked me to cover it up. Councilmember Dunn asked if I would get the police, who had investigated the matter, not to report it and said that only a few people knew about the situation. I told her I was not interested in hiding anything from our colleagues or the public."
Dunn said she believes this looks like retaliation — the mayor’s comments and his statement are inaccurate and false, she said in a statement to Peoria Independent Oct. 11.
"If the mayor was committed to truth and transparency," Dunn said, "then why has he waited until after the fact — after the accusals, after the council letter, after the council (executive) meeting — to bring forward his false assertions?
She added the city has established rules of order, parliamentary procedure, protocol, and open meetings that should have been followed by the mayor."
"While the mayor and council have every right to bring forward issues and concerns in a public forum, instead the mayor intended to have trial, conviction and execution without public notice, without a public meeting and without my involvement or participation," she said. "Only now, after the mayor and council have faced severe scrutiny, criticism, and possible legal action, has he decided to pen his own written false-narrative of events. It seems apparent that the mayor is trying to dig out of a public relations crisis - one that he caused for himself."
Meet Philip Haldiman is an award-winning journalist who most recently took first place for investigative reporting in 2023 from Arizona Newspapers Association. He joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2015, covering Sun City West his first year. Since 2016, he has covered the city of Peoria. Prior to coming to INI, he was a reporter with The Arizona Republic for seven years, covering numerous cities throughout the Valley. Before that, he was a freelance writer.
Community: Haldiman spearheads the Peoria Independent Hometown Heroes Awards program, honoring local individuals and businesses that give back to the community. He has hosted local candidate forums over the years and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists. Haldiman also served as a member of the Journalism Program Community Advisory Board at Glendale Community College. Outside journalism, Haldiman served as a member of the city of Peoria Complete Count Committee for the Census, 2019-2020. Lastly, he has served as a member of his HOA governing board since 2021.
Education: Arizona State University with a BA in Journalism and Mass Communications and a BA in Theater.
Random Fact: Haldiman is a fourth-generation Arizonan as well as wrote and produced an autobiographical comic book about his time spent in Hollywood and his life as a cult film star.
Hobbies: He enjoys hiking Arizona’s mountainous landscapes and is currently working on a play for the stage.
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