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"Monterey County District Attorney Dean Flippo announced Thursday that the investigation into possible conflicts of interest by Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare District officials has been concluded, and no criminal charged will be filed.Under California law, public officials are prohibited from making government contracts if they are able to financially benefit\u00A0from the contract. The legislature, however, created several exceptions to this general rule.\u00A0A public official who has a conflict of interest while granting contracts can face felony criminal charges. Flippo found that no laws were broken by the Salinas hospital's officials.\u00A0The State Auditor released a report in March 2012 detailing its review of the\u00A0financial\u00A0operations of Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System.\u00A0\"The reported listed possible conflicts of interest on the part of former Chief Executive Officer Sam Downing and board member Harry Wardwell,\" Flippo said.\u00A0\"The State Auditor was concerned that Mr. Downing had invested $50,000 in 1st Capital Bank stock several months before the board voted to deposit $1 million of the district's money in that bank,\" Flippo said.As long as Mr. Downing owned less than 3 percent of the bank stock and derived no more than 5 percent of his annual income from that stock, he could participate in arranging the hospital's deposit contract, Flippo said.The state auditor was also concerned about Wardwell's relationship with Rabobank, where he is a regional president. SVMH made a lease and purchase contract with Rabobank, however, Wardwell acted within the law by abstaining from participating in making the contract.Downing, Wardwell and SVMH board member Jim Gattis were all cleared by the district attorney on Thursday.\"At the direction of this board over the last 24 months, Salinas Valley Memorial has transformed into an organization that practices greater transparency in leadership and operations, it has coped with the economic downturn and has emerged a stronger, leaner and more stable organization, and it has provided nationally recognized quality care for patients in our community,\" Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System spokeswoman Adrienne Laurent said.\"The board is about to choose a new President/CEO to take Salinas Valley Memorial into the next era of healthcare,\" Laurent said.State Assemblyman Luis Alejo (D-Salinas) pushed for the audit on the Salinas hospital's executives.\u00A0\"The District Attorney has made his best determination based on the facts of the case. Although I am surprised by the decision, I appreciate the hard work done by the District Attorney\u2019s office,\" Alejo said after Thursday's findings were announced.\"I am very proud of the steps that have been taken so far to correct the mistakes of the past. I will continue to seek legislative solutions to the other problems highlighted in the State Auditor\u2019s report while we await the ongoing investigation by the Fair Political Practices Commission regarding possible violations of the Political Reform Act,\u201D Alejo said.\u00A0"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.ksbw.com/article/no-criminal-charges-for-salinas-valley-hospital-officials/1050482>