Hollister Police union issues call to fire city manager

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On the heels of mass layoffs and the cancellation of Hollister City Council’s special meeting set for Oct. 16, the Hollister Police Officers Association decided to hold its own “town hall” on the same day, calling for the city council to fire City Manager Ana Cortez. 

Just two blocks from City Hall, where city officials were originally set to meet and discuss the city’s fiscal status until Cortez cancelled the meeting due to what was deemed city staff safety issues, the police union held its impromptu event at Mad Pursuit Brewing Company to discuss “the city’s current issues with mismanagement,” according to an Oct. 15 statement released on Facebook.

Cortez issued a statement late on Oct. 15 cancelling the special meeting and town hall at City Hall, saying there were “concerns expressed by city staff regarding their personal safety.”

Ahead of the meeting, police union president Bo Leland told BenitoLink that several nonsworn police staff who were laid off were asked to return to work on Oct. 19. At the union’s town hall, he told the crowd all staff members chose to return to work even though they were still set to be laid off Nov. 14. 

“It’s already evident that the city manager’s plan was a complete failure,” he told BenitoLink.

In all, more than three dozen city employees were issued layoff notices earlier this week and placed on paid leave until the layoffs are finalized in November. 

At the meeting, Leland repeated the police union’s concerns that the department was not consulted on how to make cuts and that the layoffs would not allow the department to complete paperwork needed to charge people who are arrested. 

More than 60 people attended the gathering, which included a mixture of employees who were laid off, their families, community members, and candidates for city council and mayoral seats. 

In a Facebook post, the union invited all council members to attend to explain their positions on the layoffs and whether they supported Cortez and her actions, but only District 3 councilmember Dolores Morales showed up. Morales is the lone member of the council running for reelection, and is facing former City Manager Bill Avera.

During the union’s meeting, Leland first outlined the union’s opposition to recent layoffs and proposed a short-term solution, which was to use the funds that are earmarked to hire seven police officers to cover the salaries of the eight nonsworn staff that were let go Oct. 14. 

Leland heavily criticized Cortez’ management style and leadership, including the layoffs, and what he called her unwillingness to get feedback from department heads and unions. 

“Nothing she says can be trusted,” Leland said.

Leland said the two goals of the union was to rescind the layoff notices and to “get Ana removed” as the top administrator. 

“I just need her out of here because every single employee of the city right now feels like they’re in the back seat of a car being driven by a drunk driver,” he said. 

Leland said ideally she is fired for cause because he argued that would mean she would not receive severance pay equal to six months of her $265,000 annual salary.

According to Cortez’s contract, she could be fired for cause by the majority of the council members for five reasons, including for failing to carry out a directive of the council, for 30 days from the date of a notice by the governing body. Cortez can also be fired for repeated unexcused absences from the office, a conviction on a felony or a misdemeanor charge involving acts of “moral turpitude,” and continued abuse of non-prescription drugs or alcohol.

The city council appointed Cortez in January 2026 as the city manager. 

BenitoLink sought comment from Cortez at City Hall regarding the cancelled council meeting but was unable to reach her. On the first attempt, City Clerk Merab Talamantes said Cortez was at a meeting. On the second attempt, Talamantes said Cortez did not respond to a message about BenitoLink’s request to speak to her. 

In the first few months of her arrival, Cortez was lauded by business people for helping the city address long-standing delay issues with the permitting process.

At the recent meeting, Leland said the union had filed a complaint with city human resources against Cortez alleging she mocked employees during a rally against cuts on Oct. 14. He added Cortez is the subject of 21 “personnel investigations.”

“She has 21 and nothing has happened to her yet,” Leland said. “She needs to be removed from the driver’s seat and (it) needs to happen Monday night.”

The City Council has a scheduled meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 19. The agenda includes a city manager performance evaluation in closed session and fiscal reports from several departments.

Leland told BenitoLink on Oct. 14 that the police union that day had approved a vote of no confidence in Cortez. 

The union’s meeting lasted more than an hour and included attendees asking Leland questions. 

Morales answered some of the questions, but noted she could not talk about Cortez because it’s a “personnel issue” and apologized to the laid off employees, saying it was a “tragedy” how the city handled the situation.

Asked about if the city conducted a background check on Cortez before hiring, Morales said a firm conducted a search and presented the city council with a “limited (list of) candidates” in which Cortez was the front runner. 

Morales said the council asked the recruiter about her employment history, referencing two instances in which Cortez resigned following investigations into her managerial style and wrongful terminations, but that the firm said everything was “fine.”

In addition to the pushback by the police union, there is an online petition to remove Cortez that had garnered 706 signatures by Oct. 16. The petition references the history of complaints against her by employees since 2020 when she was the city manager of Helena, Montana.

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