STOCKTON CITY CLERK Katherine Roland has submitted her resignation, effective Sept. 26, following weeks of uncertainty over her position and closed-session discussions about leadership of the City Clerk’s Office.
In her resignation letter, obtained by Stocktonia, Roland said she will work from home from Sept. 1 through Sept. 26 to wrap up pending projects while clerk staff continue providing services on-site. She said she would remain available to assist with the transition to her replacement.
Roland also recommended that the city contact the California Municipal Clerks Association for advice on qualified candidates who could serve on an interim basis.
The resignation letter does not state why Roland is leaving.
Her departure follows a tumultuous summer for the office responsible for administering Stockton elections and maintaining the city’s official records.
Three councilmembers sought a special closed-session meeting July 31 to discuss possible “discipline/dismissal/release” of the city clerk, according to emails Stocktonia obtained.
Councilmember Michele Padilla initiated the request. Councilmember Brando Villapudua replied 10 minutes later that he concurred, and Councilmember Mariela Ponce later added her support.
Padilla’s email requested a 9 a.m. Aug. 3 meeting with one closed-session item identifying the position under discussion as “City Clerk.” Villapudua replied, “I concur with Councilmember Padilla.”
The requested Aug. 3 meeting did not take place. Mayor Christina Fugazi later called a similar special closed session for Aug. 4 that included personnel matters involving possible discipline, dismissal or release of a public employee and appointment of a city clerk. The meeting was canceled before the council convened.
Roland characterized the July 31 effort as retaliation in emails Stocktonia obtained.
Her allegation followed an earlier dispute over her request for an investigation into alleged interference in the June 2 primary election. Roland had made allegations involving Fugazi’s public information officer, Jason Teramoto.
Teramoto previously told Stocktonia the allegations had “zero merit.”
Emails Stocktonia obtained show Roland had also contacted staff with the California State Controller’s Office in June about concerns over her performance review and treatment by members of the council. She wrote June 24 that one councilmember had recommended her termination and alleged that criticism of her election administration followed her complaint involving Teramoto.
The Controller’s Office responded that day and asked Roland to schedule a call to discuss her concerns.
The emails and records Stocktonia obtained do not establish that the July 30 access dispute caused the following day’s effort to discuss Roland’s employment.
Records detail July 30 access dispute
Emails and city records Stocktonia obtained also provide new details about a dispute over access to the City Clerk’s Office that occurred one day before Padilla sought the closed-session discussion.
On July 30, Records Research Specialist Sharidan McHan reported finding Teramoto and Villapudua in an area used by the City Clerk’s Office without a clerk employee escort.
McHan wrote that she was sitting at her desk sometime between about 12:30 and 12:45 p.m. when she turned around and saw Teramoto and Villapudua talking about 5 feet from a doorway leading into the clerk’s office.
According to McHan’s email, Teramoto said they were “just taking a tour.” When McHan asked whether anyone was accompanying them, she said they told her no.
McHan wrote that when she asked how they got in, both men displayed their badges and Teramoto responded, “my badge.”
McHan said she told them the office was a confidential unit and instructed them to use the office’s front entrance if they wanted to enter.
A city door-access report Stocktonia obtained shows an entry for Teramoto’s badge at 12:41:03 p.m. July 30 marked “Card Admitted.”
Stocktonia’s review of the report found no entry under Villapudua’s name. Other clerk employees documented portions of the encounter in emails they sent that afternoon.
Supervising Deputy City Clerk Miranda Komanee wrote that she heard male voices coming from the clerk’s break room and heard McHan question how the men had entered. Komanee said clerk staff had neither escorted Teramoto and Villapudua nor let them into the office.
Shortly afterward, Roland emailed senior city officials and blind-copied councilmembers, saying people who were not Clerk’s Office employees had accessed the office and that she had requested an audit of key-card access, according to emails Stocktonia obtained.
“We are a confidential unit as mandated by our election duties,” Roland wrote.
She said people should not be able to access the office, particularly candidates for office, without an approved escort from clerk staff.
City Safety Officer Mindy Richardson responded minutes later that staff were changing access permissions.
Emails Stocktonia obtained also show a disagreement between Roland and Padilla over which parts of the first floor were considered part of the City Clerk’s Office.
Padilla wrote that she previously entered the area with her daughter while showing her the new council chamber but did not know she was entering without permission.
“This is first time information has been brought to my attention,” Padilla wrote. “I was completely unaware I was entering without proper permission.”
Roland responded that clerk staff had intercepted Padilla and her daughter during that visit. She also wrote that the city had offered all councilmembers and staff guided tours after the move to the new City Hall and that those who attended received instructions about confidentiality and access.
Questions over who would lead the office
Questions about Roland’s status continued throughout August.
City officials described Roland as temporarily absent and convened two City Council closed session meetings to consider appointing an acting city clerk. Neither meeting produced a publicly announced appointment.
After the second discussion, Interim City Attorney Donald Larkin announced there was no reportable action. City spokesperson Tony Mannor previously told Stocktonia an acting clerk was needed “to ensure continuity of operations during a temporary absence by the City Clerk.”
The city did not disclose when Roland’s absence began, why she was absent or when she was expected to return.
Vice Mayor Jason Lee also asked the State Bar of California in August to investigate allegations that then-City Attorney Marci Arredondo directed the city’s Human Resources Department to offer Roland about $250,000 to resign without City Council authorization.
Stocktonia has not independently reviewed documents confirming Lee’s allegation that Arredondo directed the city to offer Roland about $250,000 to resign. Filing a complaint with the State Bar does not mean misconduct occurred or that disciplinary action will follow.
Rick Coca, a spokesperson for the State Bar of California, told Stocktonia on Aug. 18 that the agency could not confirm whether Arredondo is the subject of a complaint or investigation because state law keeps disciplinary matters confidential. Coca said complaints and investigations generally remain private unless the State Bar files formal disciplinary charges with the State Bar Court or the court accepts and files a disciplinary stipulation.
Turnover among Stockton’s charter officers
Roland’s resignation adds to a broader pattern of turnover in Stockton’s top appointed positions since the current City Council took office in January 2025.
The City Council directly appoints four charter officers: the city manager, city attorney, city clerk and city auditor. With Roland’s departure, all four offices will have experienced a change in leadership or service provider during the current council’s tenure.
Former City Manager Harry Black left in January 2025 after the council considered his dismissal. The position changed hands several times before the council appointed Johnny Ford as permanent city manager in November.
The city attorney position has also changed twice. Lori Asuncion resigned in January after councilmembers placed her possible dismissal on a closed-session agenda. The council hired Marci Arredondo in March, but she resigned months later, leaving Stockton without a permanent city attorney for the second time in less than seven months. Donald Larkin is serving as interim city attorney.
Stockton’s city auditor function also changed after Moss Adams, the outside firm that had served as the city’s internal auditor since 2013, notified the city in February 2025 that it would terminate its contract. After a period without an auditor, the council hired UHY Advisors Mid-Atlantic Inc. in April to perform the charter-mandated auditing function.
Roland joined the city in 2015 as a deputy city clerk and later became assistant city clerk before the previous council appointed her permanent city clerk in November 2024. Her resignation makes her the fourth charter officer whose office has undergone or is set to undergo a leadership change since the current council took office in January 2025.
The turnover follows a 2025-26 San Joaquin County Civil Grand Jury report that criticized leadership instability at Stockton City Hall. The report, titled “Governance in Turmoil,” found that council infighting, interference with city staff and departures from established governance practices had contributed to poor morale and turnover in key administrative positions.
The grand jury also found that councilmembers had interfered with city staff in violation of the City Charter and recommended additional training on the charter, council conduct and the boundaries between elected officials and employees.
Roland did not immediately respond to follow-up questions about why she resigned or whether the recent disputes and closed-session discussions played a role in her decision.
Fugazi, Padilla, Villapudua, Ponce and Teramoto did not immediately respond to Stocktonia’s requests for comment by publication time.
The city also did not immediately respond to questions about who will oversee the City Clerk’s Office after Roland’s departure or whether any separation agreement exists beyond the terms described in her resignation letter.
This story originally appeared in Stocktonia.