POHOA President/Secretary Ballweber Abandons Years of Gmail/Google Drive Documents

On October 6, 2022, I presented Director Ballweber with a copy of an email from Irve Denenberg that proved he, in fact, falsely accused me of a crime, which is per se defamation. And, that the POHOA Board, at that time in January of 2020 colluded with Mr. Denenberg to keep this information from the Court to “win” a Motion to Dismiss. Mr. Denenberg even hyped the situation stating that he “feared for his life” if I ever saw the email. Yet, for YEARS, he’s been stalking us behind our house – and the Larimer County Sheriffs and POHOA have refused to do anything about it.

It’s time for this charade to be exposed, and for intervention by someone. My wife and I do not deserve to live like this, and apparently Director Ballweber is willing to delete ALL of our HOA documents in a failed attempt to make this evidence disappear. She failed.

On June 15, 2022, Director Ballweber called a Special Board Meeting that had an agenda with a cryptic item on it – “Gmail”. Having inadequate notice (of just 2 days) is now the standard and norm since she first scheduled this meeting, and she also intentionally makes the agendas vague and cryptic so it is impossible to prepare in advance.

Initially, I thought this was solely about control of the Gmail account. And, that part is true. At the 6/15 meeting, she and Director Jones pushed through a motion to make her both President and Secretary – a practice that is barred for non-profit corporations in 10 states by statute. But, it’s legal in Colorado. The asterisk you see on many websites is that it’s not recommended for a variety of reasons.

But, over the following months, it became apparent that this was about more than just who sends out emails to homeowners, and the content of those emails. The surprise at the 6/15 meeting was the motion by Director Ballweber to get rid of email entirely for the HOA. I’m not kidding – she wanted to literally delete the email address for the HOA, and have no email at all!

You can watch the whole meeting here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjiNu522DPg

Of course, many homeowners spoke up about this being a preposterous idea. Many businesses and utilities require accounts have email addresses for access to basic information and services. And, when she proposed that they just use personal email addresses, it demonstrated a lack of awareness that this is wrought with dangers for the Association. The motion eventually carried to keep the HOA Gmail account as it was.

But, it didn’t end there. By 8/1, Director Ballweber was hell bent on getting control of the Gmail account, and made new motions for her to be the administrator. Even though she admitted she had no experience being an administrator, and that, when asked she would do as administrator, she retorted that she would . . . “administrate”. It would be comical if not so scary to see blatant power grabs merged with incompetence.

When I asked that she open up the other Association Gmail account to inspection – the one used for the failed Document Revision Committee, she AND her husband got aggressive with me as the meeting ended. They demanded I recite the password (which was computer-generated, so literally not possible as it was random letters and numbers), and then claimed I needed to be removed as a Board Member for not complying with their demands.

But, I had a very good reason. I discovered in early June two things that raised serious concerns about the document retention practices at Poudre Overlook HOA.

First, I discovered an email between Board Members in January of 2020 and a former Board Member where they deliberated and decided that once Action Without A Meeting was voted upon, the emails leading to that decision would be deleted. This is both non-compliant with Colorado Statutes (CCIOA, or the Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act) and the POHOA Governing Documents.

“With respect to the Actions without a Meeting, the idea is to delete any back and forth email chain once signed documentation is included with approved meeting minutes.”

– Director Hutchinson

“I think the Action without a meeting item was confusing to me because it doesn’t clearly state that the written and signed ballots that include the motion will become part of the permanent records. I don’t have an issue with the associated correspondence being deleted since  you can’t have action without a meeting unless everyone has an official written response. It sounds like your intent is to keep those official signed response as a part of the permanent record.”

Former Director Goyn

“You are also absolutely correct about the intent to keep the official signed response as part of the permanent record.  Perhaps we need to reword that line item so there is no future confusion resulting in destruction of documents that really need to be a part of the permanent record“

– Director Hutchinson

I inquired with Director Ballweber about putting this issue on the Board agenda for the next meeting, and she refused. And, when asked whether it was still the policy to delete such emails, I never received a thoughtful or relevant response.

Second, I discovered that there was an email thread preserved as a PDF, but that the original emails were not in the account. It was an email sent to individual board members’ personal email addresses by Irve Denenberg. And, in trying to get access to the former Board Member email accounts, I was told that those accounts had been deleted entirely.

It appeared to me that someone had tried to make it disappear, but forgot to delete the PDF of emails they had made for some purpose.

Why was this email so shocking and important to me?

Because it would have changed the course of litigation I had initiated against POHOA, but was dismissed. One of the reasons given in the motion to dismiss by the Insurance company attorneys told the court that there wasn’t any documentation or evidence to support my claim. I knew there was, and demanded discovery so that they would be disclosed. But, the court denied my requests. It’s bittersweet to find this documentation after the fact, but at least, going forward, there’s clear evidence of my claims, even if the Settlement Agreement prevents me from acting upon it.

“Plaintiff offers no factual allegations to support these sweeping, conclusory statements. In fact, plaintiff does not support these allegations with a single identified statement, declarant, or time of occurrence anywhere in the complaint.”

– POHOA Motion to Dismiss (attached Page 10, Paragraph I(C))

Now, I don’t actually know whether Director Hutchinson, who promised not to disclosed Mr. Denenberg’s email (but advised him to go to police if he was truly assaulted) unless it was subpoenaed, disclosed this email to Sutton Booker, the attorneys hired by American Family Insurance to represent POHOA in the lawsuit. But, whether the law firm knew and withheld it, or they were in the dark too is kind of irrelevant to the topic here – they deleted not just the original emails, but they also deleted the email accounts.

In legal parlance, this is called spoliation of evidence. And, while there’s the potential excuse of “normal” deletion per document retention policies, in August of 2019, I had an attorney send a letter advising them to preserve all evidence over Mr. Denenberg’s campaign to defame me – because those he spoke to disclosed what he was doing to me. I just needed an email to prove it.

To me, she didn’t act impartially. Even if she was, in good faith, just trying to win the case for the association, it wasn’t proper – and certainly gave no consideration to the impact it would have on me emotionally or financially. And, if the attorneys were in on it, they could be sanctioned. I’m weighing my options in notifying the court and the Colorado Bar Association regarding this incident, but thought I’d first give Director Ballweber an opportunity to do the right thing and allow inspection of the other email addresses – including the “private” email addresses prior board members used for POHOA Business.

In my first document request of that type, Director Ballweber and Director Jones chose to try to create an inflated expense of over $300 to see documents that, as a Director, they have a duty to disclose to me, period. Clearly, cooperation was not coming.

I chose to send Director Ballweber the password shortly after the 8/15 Special Board Meeting, which was the second attempt to get control of poudreoverlookhoa@gmail.com’s admin panel. The reason I was concerned about this was that when emails are deleted, the admin can actually see the actions in the log. But, the admin can also delete or modify the logs to cover their tracks, so to speak. The best defense I had to both comply with her demands and protect those logs was to create a backup and store that elsewhere. I disclosed this to Director Ballweber, and then sent the password via USPS Certified Mail with Signature on 8/19, which was signed for on 8/24.

I anticipated that Director Ballweber would see that creating a new email address (the unfortunate and impossible-to-remember atftcpoudreoverlook@gmail.com) wasn’t in the best interest of the Association or community. But, she rushed and did it anyways. The phrase she used repeatedly to justify it was “a fresh start”, which, again, I found curious.

But, it wasn’t until Director Clay Jones and I had an informal conversation in the past 2 weeks that it dawned on me what was really going on. We’ve actually started to have a bond over . . . tomatoes. We are both gardeners. And, he’s been trying to get me to stop “worrying about the past” and “live in the moment” as part of his version of Zen philosophy. And, on some personal level, we jive on this topic.

However, when it comes down to retention of corporate records of communications and the impacts on litigation, I think it’s playing with fire. Particularly given the facts as we now know them.

Now, after giving Director Ballweber the password to poudreoverlookhoa@gmail.com and she went ahead and created the new ill-formed email, I expected access and for import of the old account into the new. But, none of that ever happened. She sent me an invitation that I accepted via Google, but she didn’t know how to (or refused to) complete the remaining steps – so I’ve literally never been inside the account to see any emails since August, nor whether the documents are in the new Google Drive.

You see, the old account not only has email communications dating back 7 years, but is also the account for access to Google Drive, where all other Association Documents had been organized (very well, actually), by former Secretary Young. She did a great job of setting up this account.

But, the reason why this is important may not be obvious to most. You see, when an HOA is faced with potential litigation over issues of enforcement, it’s the records kept that will demonstrate patterns of consistency when someone says there is not. They will prove when there haven’t been complaints about an issue, when someone says there have been. They will prove that processes were followed, deadlines met, or that adequate time for response was given. When it’s all gone, everything becomes subject to faulty memory, and he-said, she-said. A good Secretary doesn’t look to destroy all records carte blanche.

I asked Director Jones if he himself could see the new inbox, because, unbeknownst to him (and probably Director Ballweber), the “delegate access” she created only lasts 30 days. There’s a few other steps you have to follow to both send/receive emails as a delegate after that point. I don’t think he understands he doesn’t have access, which may also be by design.

But, he said one other thing that raised serious concern: He said that they intended to ABANDON the former Gmail/Google Drive account, permanently. He went back into his Zen-live-in-the-moment talk, as he justified this decision. At this point, I became alarmed. Whether he’s a witting or unwitting accomplice, it became apparent to me that this whole charade is about making documentation that might be incriminating (like Mr. Denenberg’s email) or embarrassing or perhaps even valuable to defend against future litigation – disappear forever. This is somewhere between outrage, ridiculous, and a nightmare.

After discussing this with a former Board Member, some outside attorneys, and some experts in Colorado HOA management/law, I was given repetitive advice: Sometimes you can’t prevent the train wreck. You just have to step back and protect yourself. Which is partly what publishing this account of the situations is about.

The legal options are a combination of impossibly expensive and predictably unlikely to succeed – because of game play like what is now documented with Director Hutchinson hiding evidence to “win”. I can, at the very least, inform the courts and bar association about what is happening, and perhaps get legislators to finally do something about these issues. Because, it’s not just happening in Poudre Overlook, but a pattern of behavior we see in HOAs across Colorado.

The issue is clear: CCIOA and The Non-Profit Act fail to address an era of digital records. Without specific statutes telling the Board of Directors, Managers, and Attorneys that they must not only keep emails, but also disclose them without creating exorbitant costs to deter those requesting them in good faith. Without specific statutes with penalties enforced by the state, private litigation will never serve as an effective mechanism to put checks and balances on abuses of power by Directors and Managers.

As for what to do about Mr. Deneberg’s email, I actually brought it up to him directly on 6/15, as he was walking behind our house for the millionth time just after that evening’s board meeting. I asked him if he really told the Board that he feared for his life from me. He looked stunned, put his head down, and scurried off. Thought it might be the last we’d see of him stalking us behind our house.

No dice.

When I’ve brought this up to Director Jones, I once again am told that I’m in the wrong – and MAKING enemies. I need to forget about the past and live in the moment. Zen. Ohm. Etc, etc.

What Director Jones isn’t understanding is that some of us have been in families or had experiences with sociopathic behavior. The person that wishes you harm doesn’t always look or act mean. Often, they pretend to be nice. I happen to be a member of a family who lost someone to a well-known serial killer who liked to dress up as a clown and entertain at children’s parties. What he’s not understanding is that even the extended family is affected, and when you see signs of behavior that even resembles such sociopathy, the path cannot be forgotten – you relive it in unwanted PTSD experiences.

In 2021, after 2 years of trying to get POHOA to intervene and stop Mr. Denenberg from going behind our house, I asked that the drainage areas that have become de facto park paths for walking dogs be considered amenities that could be restricted when a homeowner felt threatened. That Board refused to do anything but let us box ourselves in with a tall fence – at our own expense.

It doesn’t make any sense that Mr. Denenberg puts in writing that he fears for his life because I would assault him AND repeatedly put himself in a situation behind our house – where there is literally a dead-end corner. And, that’s why false accusations are per se defamation that don’t require victims to prove damages – because no one should have to live with a cloud over their head as people like this spread such vicious rumors about them.

If the email had been disclosed, the Motion to Dismiss would have failed, and Mr. Denenberg, and more importantly, the POHOA Board, would have had to use the “truth of the matter” as their sole affirmative defense. And, the fact that Mr. Denenberg never went to law enforcement or provided any evidence of his claims would undermine such a defense.

What makes this sociopathic, in my opinion, is something that draws from my family experience. When the person who is stalking you is also mocking you – and no one in authority will take action, it’s very difficult to “forget the past” and do like Director Jones wants and just be all Zen. Justice delayed is justice denied.

In my family’s experience, my Aunt and Uncle endured the loss of a daughter to a stabbing murder, which the police never brought the murderer to justice. Ever. My Dad had to identify the body, and had a heart attack within 30 days – at age 39. The murderer, however, didn’t disappear. He called OUR home nearly every day to threaten my Dad saying “you’re next”.

Just a few years later, their son disappeared at age 19 – and was found nearly 2 years later buried in Gacy’s basement. But, over 10 years later, the murderer mocked my Aunt from jail as he was selling his paintings, telling her she should kill herself. Well, it was ominous, because that sociopath knew that such suggestions sometimes work – and the remaining two siblings did, in fact, take their own lives in the following decades. Just sick beyond sick.

So, no, when there is no justice, it’s very very difficult to forget and move on. And, when those who should be intervening do not, and in fact enable more of the stalking, mocking, and other offensive behaviors, it’s particularly insulting to be told to simply “forget it all” and “stop living in the past”. Or however it’s phrased.

We don’t want Mr. Denenberg going behind our house, and just last Friday, my wife reported to me that she was alone, in our garden, and he tried to strike up a conversation with him. I was 70 miles away. She just stared at him till he went away, and he’s been back every day since.

No one should have to live like this when there is clear written evidence of an intention to defame us with claims of fear, while literally putting himself in a physical position to either provoke the violence he predicts, or make us constantly have to go inside or to the other side of the house to avoid him. The drainage ditch should not be something people like this have a right to use – its an amenity that the HOA has the right to restrict use and enforce.

Instead, we have Director Ballweber, who is a personal friend of Mr. Denenberg, literally willing to wipe out the HOA records to protect him – and who knows what else. We need such persons held accountable for their actions, and destroying the records and emails makes it difficult to impossible. I’m so glad I found at least this email before that mission was accomplished.

The question is: What are my fellow homeowners willing to do about it?

What I know from 5 years of activism in the legislature what the answer often is – they do everything to remain uninvolved and not become a target. I’m not that person. When I saw what Mr. Denenberg was doing as ACC Chairman to be aggressive with others, I stuck my neck out to protect others from his actions – which were not in compliance with our governing documents or Colorado statutes. I thought it was the right thing to do, and I don’t regret it.

I’m just disappointed that even when I have the smoking gun in hand, the few owners I’ve shared this with predict that no one will come to my aid, let alone believe me. Because defamation is just too plain effective. I hope this time is different, in spite of predictions to the contrary.