Three members of the board of directors for Sun Community Federal Credit Union will face a recall vote July 31, the chairman of the board said.
Rudy Moreno confirmed a meeting to vote on the possible recall of three board members would take place at the Imperial County Fairgrounds in nearby Imperial.
The three directors targeted by the recall are: Steve Birdsall, the Agricultural Commissioner for Imperial County; Oscar Rodriguez, City Manager of nearby Brawley, and Dennis James, an immigration judge. Who initiated the recall was uncertain, according to local reports.
Birdsall is accused of delaying the sale of the CU's credit card portfolio, Rodriguez allegedly had a conflict of interest in "pushing for" Sun Community to open a branch in Brawley, and James allegedly requested the names of the CU's top 2% of depositors on several occasions, allegedly for marketing purposes. In addition, James reportedly is accused of calling for a private meeting with former credit union CEO George Kirschner away from Sun Community property.
Local media outlets reported Kirschner was fired in June. Kirschner reportedly supports the recall of Birdsall, Rodriguez and James, and alleges he was removed from his position in retaliation for being a whistleblower. SCCU supervisory committee called the charges "unfounded."
The first attempt at a recall vote took place June 22. The meeting was canceled by the fire marshal when more people showed up than the local Elks Lodge could handle, according to published reports. Repeated calls to credit union officials were not returned at press time.
