SEATTLE -- Councilman Richard McIver on Wednesday rejected an offer from the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission to settle a complaint regarding his conduct, which the commission believed to be unethical.

As a result, the commission's executive director Wayne Barnett filed charges accusing McIver of ethics violations for awarding a city contract to a company where a longtime friend was employed.

The commission said there was reasonable cause to believe McIver "committed material violations of the Seattle Ethics Code" in awarding a $37,000 contract to the consulting firm of Griffin, Hill & Associates.

According to charging documents released by the commission, McIver would regularly spend time at a condo in the Virgin Islands owned by Joann Francis, who joined GHA in June 2006, about six months before the contract was awarded.

McIver, who has been a member of the city council since 1997, has spent about two weeks in each of the last last ten years at Francis' condo, the documents said.

The commission said McIver's trips to the condo were "activities that would cause a reasonable person to believe that his independence of judgment was impaired on official duties involving Ms. Francis and GHA."

Barnett said McIver was one of several council members to approve a consulting contract for a firm in which Francis is a minority partner. He said McIver should have recused himself from any such discussions.

Barnett said McIver should never have voted on a contract for a friend; however, he's not accusing McIver of rewarding his friends.

"No, no.That's not the charge. There is no evidence here that the contract was done as a favor to Joann Francis. That would have been a very different case," he said.

On Wednesday McIver refused the commission's settlement offer, denying any wrongdoing.

"These charges from the ethics commission are frivolous and without merit. I will vigorously
defend them and believe I am innocent of the charges.

"And I declined to pay any settlement fee or blackmail presented by the ethics commission to settle this thing and not go public," he said.

The initial contract to evaluate the office of the city auditor was awarded shortly after McIver returned from one of his visits to the Virgin Islands, and the commission said the contract was "not competitively bid."

The charging documents indicate that the contract was increased to a value of $42,000 a few months later, and that McIver approved the firm's invoices.

Barnett said Francis' role as McIver's personal attorney last year also raised a red flag.

On October 10 last year, McIver was arrested for allegedly assaulting his wife during a domestic dispute. Francis acted as McIver's attorney through the resulting ordeal.

"I think Ms. Francis' name was in the newspaper in connection with that domestic violence and I think that prompted a complaint to us," said Barnett.

McIver pleaded not guilty to the charges and the case was dropped after prosecutors said they couldn't proceed without cooperation or evidence from McIver's wife, Marlaina Kiner-McIver.

If found guilty by the ethics commission, McIver could face a $10,000 fine on charges of participating in a contract award and later modifying the contract. McIver said he will vigorously defend his actions which he claims followed city protocol.