Just in case you haven’t seen this in the paper, here is a letter to the editor Dan Holloway’s daughter, Shannon Holloway, wrote regarding last week’s Leftovers column:
Soured on column
Re the San Gabriel Valley Tribune column by Jennifer McLain and Tania Chatila (Sept. 8) that questioned ethical standards in general and those of my father and me in particular:
It is upsetting to realize that although I was one of the major subjects of the piece, the writers didn’t take the time to talk to me before going to press with such half-truths. I’d like to set the record straight.
I was hired by the city of La Puente as a contract photographer in 2006 without any assistance from my father who at the time was an appointed planning commissioner. I applied, interviewed and was hired on my own merits and was paid at the rate offered to me by the city. My photos of city events were to be used on their Web site and in their newsletter and calendar. I retained all copyrights and allowed the city the one-time use of any photo within the same calendar year.
After working the May 2007 Cinco de Mayo event at La Puente Park, my previously scheduled events were put on hold with no explanation. I later contacted the city only to learn that my services were no longer needed. I was informed that an “anonymous councilperson” had complained, because I was Dan Holloway’s daughter.
City Manager Carol Cowley told me that there was a perceived conflict of interest despite acknowledging there was no violation of the FPPC, attorney general or the city ethics codes. Cowley knew this complaint was purely political and divulged as much to me.
If anyone was unethical here, it was the city who violated our written work agreement on numerous occasions by using my photos more than once without further compensation. They chose to stop running photographs, which was also fine with me. I chose to let the matter drop without pursuing the pay owed me for the pictures. When I requested digital copies of my photographs the city decided to return the original discs.
At that time I tried to change my work information on MySpace. Technical difficulties prevented me from editing or deleting the field. In the following months it slipped my mind and became an oversight on my part. When brought to my attention I immediately changed the dates.
This entire experience, including this article, greatly saddens me. I am not a public person and questioning my ethics for political gain or to fill column space when I have done absolutely nothing wrong is in and of itself unethical.
Shannon Holloway
La Puente
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