New Public Advocate Makes Strides On County Ethics Commission

Miami FL

04 November, 2021

9:02 AM

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By Johania Charles, the Miami Times Nov 2, 2021 West African-born attorney Radia Turay is acclimating into a recently appointed role as public advocate for the Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics and Public Trust (COE). The position opened up when Turay's predecessor, Michael Murawski, accepted a job on Naples' ethics commission, landing the COE to vote unanimously to appoint her as advocate earlier this year. Nearly 25 years ago, the COE was established as an independent agency with quasi-judicial and advisory powers at its disposal to ensure that government employees and officials are respecting their duty to serve the public in an ethical manner. COE personnel consists of staffers in the director's office, administration workers and three units – one of which Turay is a part of. She was first drawn to advocacy and legal work during her country's civil war. The Sierra Leone native envisioned herself going into international business law, but a Syracuse University project – where she worked as a researcher and wrote memorandums in support of the Prosecutor's Office for the Special Court of Sierra Leone – quickly changed her mind. At the time, the law student worked to hold people accountable for war crimes that included torture and recruitment of children to join armed forces. The project, Turay said, was a turning point in her life as she began to witness the important role prosecutors played in bringing forth justice. Since then, she's served as an assistant state attorney and chief of a juvenile division at the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office, along with volunteering as a judge with Miami-Dade County Teen Court before turning to civil and insurance defense law. "I realized my true calling was in the government and public service [sector]," said Turay. "Being COE advocate is the position where your passion and career come together. That's what it's been to me since I got the [job] and why I applied in the first place." Now, just a few months into the gig, Turay is recounting the small victories so far and expressing the goals she has for the county while in the position. "My biggest goal is to execute the duties of my office fairly, impartially and equitably," she said. "I want to serve as the voice of Miami-Dade County residents and ensure that anyone accused of ethics violations are also treated fairly as well. One of the powers I have is to decide to initiate an ethics investigation. It's not a job that I take very lightly." Turay is not new to the commission, though. She was originally hired as a staff attorney in 2016 before being appointed to work on the commission's enforcement unit as an advocate, along with four investigators. The unit conducts investigations into employee misconduct in both county and municipal governments and processes complaints filed by the public. Cases from the investigations are then tried before the commission, where criminal prosecution and other legal consequences may be referred. Her job is to bring charges before the commission based on complaints filed and to determine whether an investigation should be conducted. Turay's first case involved working with the county's strategic procurement division to look into why a particular vendor had a contract with a department his spouse worked in, a direct violation of the Miami-Dade County Conflict of Interest and Code of Ethics Ordinance, which states that people can't have a business contract with an immediate family member in county government. "Just because you have ethics rules doesn't mean things like this won't happen, that's why you have to follow up on them to see why and how something like this can happen," said Turay. "One of the things that causes the greatest mistrust in government is the belief that the only way you can do business in the county is if you know somebody. Our mission is to create integrity in government processes." Because of the case, Turay thought to take on another issue dealing with nepotism when it comes to recruitment for county jobs, by proposing that the commission support the enforcement of a disclosure process within the county's human resources department. Applicants are now required to disclose whether a personal or familial relationship exists between them and the hiring manager, and vice versa. The disclosure must be made before the interview to a selection panel in which the deputy director of said panel will review the disclosure and determine if a conflict of interest exists. If it's determined that one does, another hiring manager decides whether the applicant qualifies for the position. "People trying to get jobs in the county should have a leveled playing field. There was nothing in county policy that required something as little as disclosure," said Turay, explaining why she wanted to have this happen. "It should hopefully address this issue in county recruitment so someone isn't getting to the county just because they know the person serving as the hiring manager. These types of systemic changes are really what makes the difference for county residents." Turay said she has also worked on other cases with a foreseeable positive impact for the county's ethical future. "I'm hoping that with my heart in the right place and with the help of the wonderful staff that I have been provided that we can do really good things for Miami-Dade County residents," she said. "To make sure that their voices are being heard. I want them to know that they have a voice even if they might not agree with what the results might be – at the very least, they know that we at the COE are objective." Though there's still much to be done, Turay is certain the county will move in the right direction with the help of residents. "We need your help," she said pleading with the community. "If you see something that is not right, that is not fair or just, we ask that you speak up. We want to build the public's trust in local government." Complaints from the community can be filed through the COE's mainline at 305.579.2594 or the hotline at 786.314.9560. The Miami Times is the largest Black-owned newspaper in the south serving Miami's Black community since 1923. The award-winning weekly is frequently recognized as the best Black newspaper in the country by the National Newspaper Publishers Association.