Pacifica Head Ordered to Leave Office After 2-Month Standoff

The fired executive director of the Pacifica Foundation ended a two-month occupation of her former office Monday after a judge ordered her to leave the nonprofit radio network’s Berkeley, Calif., premises, the Oakland Tribune reports.

Summer Reese was fired in March as head of the donor-supported, politically progressive network, which includes Berkeley’s KPFA and four other stations. Declaring the 11–7 board vote that ousted her illegal, she returned a few days later, used bolt cutters to enter the padlocked office, and began a round-the-clock occupation with her mother and other supporters.

Ms. Reese’s backers on the board then filed a suit seeking her reinstatement. Her opponents sought a temporary restraining order barring her from the office. Alameda County Judge Ioana Petrou granted the restraining order and denied a motion by Ms. Reese’s supporters to keep her in the job until the suit over her firing is resolved.

The episode is the latest in a series of dramas at Pacifica, which has been marked for years by management turmoil.