Effort to recall councilor Svilarich moves forward

Efforts to recall a Camas City Council member facing second-degree felony assault charges are moving forward, with a hearing before a Clark County Superior Court judge set for May 1.

Camas Councilor John Svilarich, 67, is facing criminal assault and reckless endangerment charges stemming from an August incident along the Washougal River Greenway Trail in Camas. According to court records, Svilarich was walking on the Camas trail with his dog and a friend on Aug. 31, when he allegedly got into an argument with a fisherman over the improper disposal of a cigarette butt near the Washougal River. Police said Svilarich escalated the argument with 46-year-old Daniel Beaudoin, throwing an 8-inch rock at Beaudoin from a 50-foot-tall pedestrian bridge and, a few minutes later, pulling a gun on the Portland man.

In response to the criminal charges, a group of Camas residents filed a recall petition with the Clark County Elections Office earlier this month in the first step toward removing Svilarich from public office.

The 10 Camas residents who signed the recall petition include Stephen Dabasinskas, who ran a failed campaign against Svilarich for the council’s at-large seat during the November 2023 general election; James Senescu, the husband of current Camas City Councilor Jennifer Senescu; and failed Camas mayoral candidate Randal Friedman.

The petition lists Svilarich’s criminal charges as the basis for the recall efforts and contends that Svilarich’s alleged actions, as described in police reports, “constitute poor judgment, lack of integrity, a serious breach of ethical standards for public officials … irreparably damaging public trust among the citizens of Camas.”