2 weeks Ago By Kelly Moyer
Efforts to recall a Camas City Council member facing second-degree felony assault charges are moving forward, with a hearing before a Clark County Superior Court judge set for May 1. Camas Councilor John Svilarich, 67, is facing criminal assault and reckless endangerment charges stemming from an August incident along the Washougal River Greenway Trail in Camas. According to court records, Svilarich was walking on the Camas trail with his dog and a friend on Aug.
31, when he allegedly got into an argument with a fisherman over the improper disposal of a cigarette butt near the Washougal River. Police said Svilarich escalated the argument with 46-year-old Daniel Beaudoin, throwing an 8-inch rock at Beaudoin from a 50-foot-tall pedestrian bridge and, a few minutes later, pulling a gun on the Portland man. In response to the criminal charges, a group of Camas residents filed a recall petition with the Clark County Elections Office earlier this month in the first step toward removing Svilarich from public office.
The 10 Camas residents who signed the recall petition include Stephen Dabasinskas, who ran a failed campaign against Svilarich for the council’s at-large seat during the November 2023 general election; James Senescu, the husband of current Camas City Councilor Jennifer Senescu; and failed Camas mayoral candidate Randal Friedman. The petition lists Svilarich’s criminal charges as the basis for the recall efforts and contends that Svilarich’s alleged actions, as described in police reports, “constitute poor judgment, lack of integrity, a serious breach of ethical standards for public officials ..
. irreparably damaging public trust among the citizens of Camas.” The petitioners also allege that, during the course of the police investigation in August, Svilarich “engaged in uncooperative, evasive and dishonest behavior unbecoming of an elected official and violating public trust” and state in the recall petition that Svilarich’s “deceitful action constitutes misfeasance and malfeasance, which affects his performance of official duties.
” The Camas residents have asked that Clark County officials call for an election to determine if Svilarich should be recalled and discharged from office. On Monday, Svilarich said he has never considered stepping down from his council seat. “It never even entered my mind,” Svilarich said.
“I believe it will come out in court that I’ve done nothing wrong.” Svilarich added that he believes the recall petition is “baseless, with no foundation to it.” “It’s funny that the person filing the petition was my opponent in the election,” Svilarich added, referencing Dabasinskas.
“It would be easy to think somebody is trying to thwart the will of the voters.” Svilarich said Monday that he has lived in Camas a long time and believes voters knew what they were getting when they elected him to the council’s at-large seat in 2023. “I can rub people the wrong way,” Svilarich admitted.
“But I’m very passionate about Camas and its future.” A jury trial to consider Svilarich’s criminal assault and reckless endangerment charges is set to begin May 5 in Superior Court..
