Long-time AC Transit director Joel Young subjected another director, Sarah Syed, to \u201cunwanted physical contact\u201d during a board meeting recess last year, an independent investigation has found.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The investigation was triggered by an anonymous complaint against Young, who is currently the transit agency board\u2019s at-large member<\/a>, about an incident that occurred on September 24, 2025, in the public board room at the agency\u2019s headquarters in Oakland. The agenda that day included, among other board items, a remembrance of Director Christian Peeples<\/a>, who had died some weeks earlier.\u00a0<\/p>\n The investigation was conducted by the Oakland law firm Meyers Nave and involved interviewing Syed and other witnesses and reviewing video, documents and agency policies. According to a December 17 letter addressed to Syed<\/a>, the claim that she experienced unwanted physical contact was substantiated. The unwanted touching, according to the letter, violated the agency\u2019s Board Policy No. 260, which prohibits gender-based harassment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The letter did not say whether Young would face discipline.\u00a0<\/p>\n Late last night, the agency posted<\/a> a public statement about the investigation for the first time, affirming \u201cconfidence in [the] independent review.\u201d It also made the video of the incident public<\/a> on its YouTube page, \u201cso riders, employees, elected officials, and the East Bay communities we serve can review the footage and better understand the investigator\u2019s conclusions.\u201d<\/p>\n The video shows Young putting his hands around Syed at the 2-hour and 49-second mark.\u00a0<\/p>\n The AC Transit statement confirmed that the board has the authority to consider disciplinary action when a policy violation is found, and said that any sanctions would have to be considered during a public meeting. \u201cTo date, no meeting to consider discipline has been scheduled,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n \u201cShe bristled and stiffened and looked very uncomfortable. Other people raised their eyebrows and looked at each other with concern.\u201d<\/p>\n AC Transit board member Jean Walsh<\/p>\n Another board director, Jean Walsh, told The Oaklandside that she observed the interaction in question. She recalled that Young approached Syed from behind, \u201cwrapping both his arms around her and squeezing her in a big embrace from behind.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe bristled and stiffened and looked very uncomfortable,\u201d Walsh said. \u201cOther people raised their eyebrows and looked at each other with concern. Other people definitely noticed. That\u2019s what I saw and found it to be inappropriate and kind of creepy.\u201d<\/p>\n Walsh said that the close contact was especially strange because Young and Syed are not friends and \u201cnot on the best of terms,\u201d with Young even once urging the board to censure<\/a> Syed in 2025 over her interactions with the agency\u2019s then CEO.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a weird interaction,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The investigators, according to the same letter, found that the touching did not violate other board policies that prohibit bullying, abusive conduct, and workplace violence.\u00a0<\/p>\n Young responded to The Oaklandside with a written statement, saying that September evening was emotional for the board because of Peeples\u2019 recent death. Young said he \u201coffered comfort and support\u201d to his fellow board members and \u201cunfortunately, one colleague experienced my gesture differently.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI respect that her experience was different from my intent,\u201d Young said, which he said was \u201csimply an effort to show Director Syed that I wanted to put our disagreements\u2026behind us and return to the civil working relationship and friendship we once had.\u201d<\/p>\n Young, a past board president, said the investigator did not recommend that any disciplinary action be taken in his case, an assertion AC Transit spokesperson Robert Lyles would not comment on, citing \u201climits on what our Transit District can legally disclose regarding an internal workplace investigation.\u201d Young said the claim itself was a form of retaliation by Syed for Young\u2019s role overseeing the earlier disciplinary process against her.\u00a0<\/p>\n Board President Diane Shaw responded to The Oaklandside by sending a statement signed by her and three other directors, Murphy McCalley, Anthony Silva and Harpreet Sandhu, defending Young.<\/p>\n \u201cDirector Young is the longest-serving member of the current Board, serving since 2009, including as vice president and president. His tenure includes securing more than $600 million for AC Transit, advancing workforce development and transit technology, expanding the district\u2019s zero-emission fleet, and representing AC Transit nationally,\u201d the board members wrote. \u201cThat record provides important context for understanding the commitment he has made to AC Transit and the communities we collectively serve.\u201d<\/p>\n Syed, by contrast, is a relative newcomer just finishing her first term on the board. She agreed to comment to The Oaklandside only after AC Transit publicly released the video of the incident. \u201cEvery woman knows the difference between a hug and a squeeze of her neck,\u201d she said by text message. \u201cI\u2019m speaking out because this event was an escalation of prior verbal harassment, unwanted touching and angry outbursts. No one should have to endure gender-based harassment at their work or fear for their safety.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Walsh, in a call with The Oaklandside, said the support of Young by the four board members under these circumstances was \u201coutrageous.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n A forceful response by female elected officials<\/p>\n Over the weekend, the report\u2019s two-page cover letter became public when it was sent as a link in an email from Rebecca Saltzman, El Cerrito\u2019s mayor pro tem and a former BART board president, to the Central Committee of the Alameda County Democratic Party. Saltzman sent the email ahead of a Sunday meeting where the committee would choose which candidates to endorse for the upcoming general election, including for AC Transit\u2019s Ward 3 race.\u00a0<\/p>\n The board decided three years ago to phase out Young\u2019s at-large position,<\/a> and so Young is now running for the Ward 3 seat \u2014 the seat Syed currently occupies \u2014 which represents Central and North Oakland, Piedmont and Alameda. Young faces Adriana Valencia, a tech product manager from Oakland.<\/p>\n Thanks to a 2023 redistricting, Syed is now running for the Ward 4 seat, which covers East Oakland and most of the Oakland hills. Her opponent is Gabriel Morales, an educator.<\/p>\n