External investigation finds Supervisor Rex Bohn hostile during Tobacco Licensing meeting

Humboldt County employees present at a virtual ad‑hoc committee meeting in June say they were subjected to hostile and aggressive behavior by First District Supervisor Rex Bohn, a third‑party investigation has concluded, setting up a scheduled Board of Supervisors discussion and a referral to the Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury to review the county’s Code of Conduct complaints procedure. County records and reports disagree on the exact meeting date, listing June 24 in one file and July 24 in another.

The external investigator sustained the central allegation that Bohn “used an intense tone, an elevated voice, and exhibited body language that indicated he was frustrated, angry, and/or irritated with County employees for failing to take action regarding a waiver or amendment to the Tobacco Retail License,” language taken directly from the investigative finding. The complaint alleges Bohn engaged in “abusive and hostile behavior toward staff” and pressured employees to circumvent the county’s Tobacco Retail Licensing Ordinance as a “special favor for his friend,” a charge that prompted the impartial review.

Human Resources routed the complaint through the three‑person panel established under the 2022 Code of Conduct revisions, and the panel referred the matter to an independent investigator. Humboldt County Director of Human Resources Zachary O’Hanen notified Bohn by letter dated Sept. 24 that “the purpose of the investigation is fact‑finding, and no decisions will be made until all relevant facts are gathered and you are given an opportunity to explain your side of the story.” O’Hanen’s letter further stated, “The County has retained an external investigator, Kimberlie Revai, to investigate this matter. Kimberlie will be reaching out to you to secure a time for an interview to be conducted. Please cooperate fully with the investigator and answer questions in a complete and truthful manner.”

Records compiled by county staff show a discrepancy over who conducted the final review: one staff report attributes the work to Kramer Workplace Investigations while O’Hanen’s Sept. 24 letter names Kimberlie Revai as the retained investigator. The county’s staff report also records the investigation’s cost to date as $15,991, with the expense paid from the county’s liability fund.

Supervisor Bohn declined to participate in the independent review, telling county officials he considered the allegations baseless and reasoning that “staying out of it would save the county money,” according to the staff report. The Board of Supervisors planned to place the matter on a Tuesday agenda for discussion and has asked the Civil Grand Jury to weigh in on possible changes to the complaints handling process, following precedent: a previous third‑party investigation led to the removal and censure of Supervisor Bushnell and a separate review largely cleared Supervisor Madrone.

The conflicting records — meeting date, investigator identity, and whether Bohn was interviewed — underline the need for the county to release the full investigative report, the engagement contract or invoices, and the meeting transcript or video. The upcoming board discussion and the Civil Grand Jury review will determine whether those materials are made public and whether procedural changes to the Code of Conduct are recommended.