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Category: Steve Lopez

Steve Lopez: Are ex-Bell officials hogs or pigs?

Talk back with Steve LopezAll right, so we knew former Bell officials were bellying up to the public trough. But is there a difference between a pig and a hog?

I decided to check after reading about this e-mail exchange between former Bell Assistant City Administrator Angela Spaccia and Randy Adams, who was about to become the police chief:

ADAMS: "I am looking forward to seeing you and taking all of Bell's money?!"

SPACCIA: "Okay … just a share of it!! LOL … well you can take your share of the pie … just like us!!! We will all get fat together … Bob has an expression he likes to use on occasion … Pigs get Fat … Hogs get slaughtered!!!! So as long as we're not Hogs … All is well!"

Bob, of course, is Robert Rizzo, the former city administrator who made nearly $800,000 a year. Bob is looking at 53 felony counts in the alleged looting of the city of Bell, so I think you could say the slaughter has begun.

Adams was paid more than $400,000; and Spaccia, who made $376,000, is charged with misappropriating funds. They all got fat together, in other words, and whether you use the term pig, hog or wild boar, what can you say to any of this but oink, oink, oink?

The exchange between Spaccia and Adams was released in the midst of Monday's preliminary hearing, and Spaccia's attorney Russell Petti wasted no time in putting a cloven hoof into his own mouth. He told Times reporter Jeff Gottlieb we shouldn't get the wrong idea about those e-mails, because Spaccia was actually "trying to save the city of Bell money."

Thanks, counselor. I'll believe that when pigs fly, as they say.

Petti also said: "The intent of that is, 'Look, we're all very well compensated by the city and let's not be pigs about it.' "

Yeah, sure. Spaccia tells Adams they'll all get fat together, Adams ends up making more than police chiefs in Los Angeles and New York, and she's out to save Bell money?

But I digress. Is there a difference between a pig and a hog?

Apparently so.

The dictionary says a pig is "any of several mammals of the Suidae family." Or, "any person regarded as being pig-like, greedy or gross."

A hog is defined as a pig weighing over 120 pounds, and also as a "self-indulgent, gluttonous or filthy person."

So are they pigs or are they hogs?

To be safe, should we just go with swine?

-- Steve Lopez

Photos: (Left) Randy Adams in June 2010. Credit: Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times. (Right): Angela Spaccia in October 2010. Credit: Al Seib / Los Angeles Times


Steve Lopez: Is Carmen Trutanich L.A.'s Mubarak? [Updated]

Hamid Khan, Alma Soto Chloe Osmer and Garrick Ruiz

Nuch, are you kidding?

There's a lot I like about Los Angeles City Atty. Carmen Trutanich, a Pedro longshoreman in a suit. As a columnist, how can you not like a city official who calls you up and asks you to get high and drive a police cruiser in an experiment?

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef0133f4150cbe970b-pi

I also liked when he threatened to prosecute city officials and lock up a City Council member in a scrum over the enforcement of advertising restrictions.

But in threatening to lock up dozens of protesters involved in various demonstrations, giving them up to a year of jail time, Trutanich looks like the bully his critics have long accused him of being.

The protesters didn't get permits, so the demonstrations were illegal?

Oh, give me a break, Nuch. In this disengaged, apathetic society, we need more protests, not fewer.

[Updated at 8:35 a.m.: And Nuch, if you want to see the positive powers of protest, turn on the TV and watch what's going on in Egypt.]

Trutanich has been complaining about his staff being shrunk by L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and this is how he wants to use his precious resources?

Nuch said the protests had cost the city thousands of dollars in police response.

But it'll cost many, many more thousands to prosecute and jail the protesters, won't it?

If you're not already racing over to the city attorney's office to protest, let me know what you think.

-- Steve Lopez

Photo: From left, Hamid Khan, Alma Soto, Chloe Osmer and Garrick Ruiz were among those arrested during protests last year at the Metropolitan Detention Center, background, against Arizona's immigration law. Under a new policy of the Los Angeles city attorney, they face the possibility of jail time. Credit: Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times


Steve Lopez: Are you ticked off by a traffic ticket?

Traffic

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef0133f4150cbe970b-piHave you gotten a traffic ticket lately?

If so, did you choke when you saw the fee?

Traffic camera tickets, issued when you're caught on video running a red light, used to cost a few hundred dollars. But in the last couple of years, some are as high as $500-$600, says Steve Miller of Ticketbust.com, which tries to knock down the fees or get tickets dismissed altogether.

"Business is booming," said Miller, who told me that Californians are also ticked off about speeding ticket fines that run as high as several hundred dollars. "In the last two years, we've seen over a 100% increase in business each year."

Look, if someone's blowing red lights or barreling down a highway 90 miles an hour with a phone to the ear, I don't have much sympathy. But for questionable or relatively minor infractions, working folks are being hammered by fee increases imposed to fill budget gaps. Is it fair to charge someone half a month's rent, or the cost of a month's supply of food, for a slow-rolling turn as a light goes from yellow to red?

"They're dinging every single person then can," said Susan Novacoski, a registered nurse who opened her mail one day in November to find that she'd been hit with a $556 fee for allegedly running a red light in Loma Linda.

Novacoski didn't recall running a light, but didn't want to have to lose a day of work proving it. As a widow with a teenage daughter and a fulltime job at "a short-staffed hospital," she said, "I do not have a lot of time to play Perry Mason." She reluctantly decided to pay $219 to Ticketbust.com to handle the ticket, only to find a few days later that the ticket had been dismissed because of technical problems with the video camera ticketing system.

In fact, Loma Linda has since gotten rid of all its cameras because of complaints by citizens. Novacoski said that didn't do her any good. She's still out $219 for a violation she claims she didn't commit, and she struck out after wasting hours trying to get Loma Linda to cover that cost or at least give her an apology.

Do you have a horror story of your own?

If so, court is in session.

--Steve Lopez

Photo: An intersection in Costa Mesa. Credit: Marc Martin / Los Angeles Times


Sundance documentary raises questions about D.A. Steve Cooley's role in appeal of 1982 murder case [Updated]

Deborah Peagler, pictured behind the security glass at Central California Women's Facility prison. Credit: Yoav Potash
A documentary that presents a withering view of Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley's handling of a controversial murder case premiered this week at the Sundance Film Festival.

The film, "Crime after Crime," focuses in part on what the filmmakers argue were key errors in the prosecution of a domestic violence victim who orchestrated the killing of her estranged lover, errors they say Cooley was reluctant to admit.

Deborah Peagler spent 26 years in prison for the 1982 killing of Oliver Wilson in South Los Angeles. Her attorneys say her crime should have led to a six-year sentence, if prosecutorial errors had been disclosed and if Wilson’s abuse had been considered.

According to her lawyers, the district attorney should have disclosed an internal memorandum that concluded a key witness against her had perjured himself and that they never intended to seek the death penalty against her.

Cooley's spokeswoman, Sandi Gibbons, said he had no plans to see the film.

"Deborah Peagler," she said, "intentionally orchestrated the murder-for-hire of her estranged boyfriend. She lured him to the spot where he was killed. She witnessed the murder and drove the killers away. She profited by receiving money from the victim's insurance."

Gibbons noted that Cooley -- who was elected Los Angeles County district attorney in 2000 -- was among numerous law enforcement and court officials of the opinion that Peagler should remain imprisoned. 

"Her post-conviction collateral appeals were denied by various courts of record," Gibbons said. "Her claims have been discredited over and over again."

The highly emotional film follows Peagler and her two pro bono attorneys in their years-long fight against Cooley to win her release.

Continue reading »

Steve Lopez: Was I too hard on Robert Rizzo? No way

Robert Rizzo

To critics who say I was too harsh or unfair for attempting to interview Robert Rizzo, the reviled former Bell city official who is now guarding a parking lot in Huntington Beach, I've carefully considered the criticism and have two things to say.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef0133f4150cbe970b-piFirst, I have no regrets. Second, I'm not sorry. I thought it was worth asking Rizzo if he had any regrets or would like to apologize for the fiasco in Bell.

He has been essentially unresponsive and unavailable since the story broke, and I thought it was worth trying to get him to talk when I had a rare chance.

He is charged with more than 50 felonies and is accused, along with cohorts, of misappropriating millions of dollars in a poor community, while concealing the fact that his annual compensation was in the $1.5-million neighborhood.

Citizens paid astronomical taxes during this period, and among the money allegedly raided was a low-income housing fund. In the grand tradition of bellying up to the public trough, Rizzo stands charged as a champion, a high achiever and a Hall of Famer, make no mistake.

As he awaits trial, the city of Bell suffers the devastating effects of years of deception and mismanagement, and it may take many more years for fiscal order to be restored. If you'd like to read a columnist who would pass on the opportunity to ask the man about his alleged deeds, and yes, to put his feet to the fire, you should immediately find another columnist.

I'd also like to say that despite one reader's claim that Latinos like me should be kicked out of the country, I'm actually thinking of staying, at least until I see what happens at Rizzo's trial.

-- Steve Lopez

Photo: Former Bell City Administrator Robert Rizzo has a new gig as a parking lot attendant in Huntington Beach. Credit: Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times


Steve Lopez: Dodgers divorce ruling good news for fans who want McCourts gone

Carlos Delgado, Associated Press

Around my office, the reactions were nearly unanimous recently when it came time to decide whether to keep our shares in a Dodgers season-ticket plan.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef0133f4150cbe970b-piOne guy had the good sense to opt out; the rest of us saps, who thrive on disappointment, renewed reluctantly.

What the heck, I figured. I can sell mine later — maybe — if the thought of going to the ballpark next season to see a mediocre team owned by anyone named McCourt becomes too depressing.

But things may be looking up now that Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Scott Gordon ruled Tuesday morning that Frank McCourt is not the sole owner of the Dodgers. Gordon said that McCourt’s estranged wife, Jamie, is a rightful owner along with Frank.

The good news in that is obvious: With the two McCourts dividing assets and showing no inclination to agree on anything, they might have to unload the team to get on with their lives.

That’s not quite as exciting as a World Series ring, but it’s a close second. Believe me, all of Los Angeles would benefit if somebody else — anybody else — got hold of this team and showed more interest in purchasing left fielders and pitchers than next-door mansions in Malibu, not to mention the dingbat the McCourts hired to send good vibes to the Dodgers from his home in Boston.

Of course, lots of legal jousting remains, with Frank still trying to find ways to unload Jamie. So this could drag on for a while. In the meantime, the judge had already ordered Frank to pay Jamie $637,159 a month so she can get by, and yes, my offer of marriage to her still stands as long as the judge’s support order still stands.

I have three questions for you, dear readers:

Would you like to send the McCourts back to Boston?

Who would you like to see buy the team?

And are you interested in buying any of my tickets this coming season?

RELATED:

Judge rules in Jamie McCourt's favor

Frank and Jamie McCourt officially divorced -- but Dodgers ownership still up in the air

Frank McCourt's attorneys go on the offensive in closing arguments of divorce trial

-- Steve Lopez

Photo: The couple in happier days. Credit: Associated Press


Steve Lopez: What if Robert Kennedy had not been assassinated?

Kneeling again next to RFK


Rigo Chacon, who arranged for his friend Juan Romero to visit the grave of Bobby Kennedy Saturday at Arlington National Cemetery, tells me Romero seems to be a changed man since the visit.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef0133f4150cbe970b-pi"I think it made a world of difference," said Chacon, a retired TV newsman who met Romero the same way I did -- while working on a story about the busboy who tried to help Kennedy after he was mortally wounded by an assassin at the Ambassador Hotel in 1968.

Kennedy had just won the state's presidential primary. As I related in my Sunday column, Romero has been haunted by the ordeal all these years. In an instant, Kennedy's life was snuffed out just as Romero, 17 at the time, felt a sense of great hope for the country and for immigrants such as himself.

To keep Kennedy's spirit alive, Romero has been speaking up in recent years about tolerance and social justice, believing that it is his duty to do so. Still, he remained deeply troubled, and Chacon had talked him into visiting the grave to confront his ghosts. 

"I'm not a psychologist, but it seemed to be something he needed, and he was relieved and more talkative on the way home," Chacon said. Chacon runs a nonprofit called Abrazos and Books, which presents scholarships to Santa Clara County students.

The scholarships are named for inspirational local leaders, including Romero. For more information, go to Abrazosandbooks.com. Romero has often wondered what course history might have taken if there was no assassin named Sirhan Sirhan, and RFK's win in California led him, rather than Richard Nixon, to the White House.

Tell me what you think.

RELATED:

Kneeling again next to RFK

Framework: The assassination of Robert F. Kennedy

-- Steve Lopez

Photo: Boris Yaro / Los Angeles Times


Steve Lopez: Meg Whitman spent $50 for each vote she got. Is that an outrageous extravagance?

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef013483a0868a970c-600wi

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef0133f4150cbe970b-pi

If you want to find something to feel good about in Tuesday's election results, look to the fact that money isn't everything.

As of Oct. 16, according to the secretary of state's office, Meg Whitman spent almost $107 million on TV and radio advertising to Jerry Brown's $21 million.

She spent $11.7 million on campaign consultants to Brown's $167,000.

She spent $10.5 million on campaign literature and mailings to Brown's $2.5 million.

She spent $5.9 million on campaign worker salaries to Brown's $157,000.

She spent $2.3 million on office expenses to Brown's $132,000.

Total expenditures? Whitman spent six times as much, or $160 million -- $141 million of it her own -- to Brown's $24.8 million.

You'd think the former EBay exec would know a good deal when she sees one, but she ended up paying roughly $50 for each of her 3 million-plus votes, and got trounced.

Maybe it wasn't too bright, after all, to outspend Brown by more than six times while trying to cast herself as a cost-cutter and Brown as a big spender.

But did Whitman lose because voters were turned off by her outrageous extravagance at a time when unemployment is in double-digits? Or did she lose because she didn't have the goods on policy?

I'd say both things did her in, as did her cold-fish personality and the revelation that as a student, she had apparently skipped classes on both civics and suffrage, having gone decades without stepping inside a polling booth.

But I say Whitman would have done much better if she had explained how exactly she intended to fire 40,000 state employees while growing the economy, improving schools and slashing spending. If she'd made any of it seem even remotely realistic, she might even have won, no matter how much cash she set fire to.

Don't you think?

-- Steve Lopez

Photos: Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown. Credit: Los Angeles Times


Columnist Steve Lopez smokes a joint, takes a driving test

The man in the uniform had a question for me. "How do you feel?" CHP Sgt. David Nelms asked. His interest in my health was probably prompted by the fact that I was at that moment toking a joint stuffed with a bud called Train Wreck.

Pretty good, I said, already buzzed enough to wonder if this was really happening.

In my youth, I spent more than a few evenings hoping the police weren't keeping close tabs on my activities. So it felt a bit strange last week to have a group of cops paw my marijuana stash and then ask me to get high.

"There you go, Cheech," said KABC radio host Peter Tilden, a fellow volunteer. Tilden was smoking something called Blockhead, which I presume is a standard choice among talk show hosts.

As reported in my first installment of the Cannabis Chronicles on Sunday, I had been asked by Los Angeles City Atty. Carmen Trutanich to help determine whether, and how, marijuana impairs driving. He recruited more than two dozen police officers from various Southern California agencies and the CHP to bear witness and study the differences between driving while high and driving while drunk.

Read the full column here: "He's a train wreck behind the wheel."

-- Steve Lopez


Steve Lopez: The real outrage behind the Whitman 'whore' remark

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef013483a0868a970c-600wi

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef0133f4150cbe970b-pi All right, sure. I think we can all agree that it's inappropriate for either Jerry Brown or one of his staffers to refer to Meg Whitman, his rival, as a whore.

What are all the impressionable young students in civics classes supposed to think? Wait, do we still fund civics classes in California?

If you saw the story about a recorded phone conversation Brown had with the Los Angeles Police Protective League, whose endorsement he was shopping for, it's not clear whether it was Brown or one of his snarky minions who used the "prostitute" reference.

But here's the deal: The endorsement went to Whitman, who would have you believe that public-employee unions are public enemy No. 1 and that they've got Brown in their pocket, making him incapable of reining in spending or balancing a budget.

And yet Meg had agreed to exempt public-safety employees from a pension reform plan in which she would move state workers into 401(k)s. Yeah, she's tough as nails, but she'll sell her soul for an endorsement.

If "whore" is the wrong word for that, is "hypocrite" the right one? You be the judge.

Talk to me, California.

-- Steve Lopez

Photos: Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown. Credit: Los Angeles Times




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