Attorney General Investigates LA Restructuring Amidst City Council Scandal – Orange County Register

As protesters again disrupted the start of Wednesday’s Los Angeles City Council meeting, state attorney general Rob Bonta confirmed that his office would look into the city’s reorganization process in light of racial issues, and will take action in 2021. I have recorded the conversation. .

“The statements made by senior Los Angeles officials were unacceptable, offensive, and extremely distressing and hurtful to many communities,” Bonta said. If you do, there is no place for anti-black, anti-Semitic, anti-Indigenous, homophobic, or discriminatory rhetoric.”

Bonta added: And it is not to be blamed. Given these special circumstances, my office will investigate. We collect facts. We will uncover the truth and take the necessary steps to ensure the fair application of the law. ”

The inquiry is the latest ramifications from leaked recordings over the weekend that former council chairman Nuri Martínez has stepped down as council chairman and meeting participants Kevin de Leon and Gil Sedillo. Voices calling for his resignation, along with the members of the legislature, spread.

The conversation covered Martinez making a series of racist comments targeted at various ethnic groups, and Alderman Mike Bonin’s two-year-old black adopted son. The remarks were made during a meeting with Los Angeles County Labor Federation President Ron Herrera to discuss the restructuring process.

Herrera then resigned as president of the federation. Martinez has taken a leave of absence from her council, but she and her two other council members have so far refused to resign her seat.

Bonin said the conversation will make a detailed study of the city’s zoning process essential.

The city council will object on Tuesday as it calls for the resignation of three city council members, including a statement from President Joe Biden, calls for a state investigation into the city’s redistricting process, and pitches an independent redistricting commission. Faced with the public. Corruption in City Hall.

Los Angeles City Council Interim Speaker Mitch O’Farrell postponed Wednesday’s meeting amidst the uproar as protesters continue to disrupt proceedings. He said he would try to resume the meeting on

City council members put forward several agenda items to deal with the fallout, including a resolution condemning Rep. Martínez, De Leon and Cedillo, as well as a resolution signed by seven members, prompting their immediate resignations. Martinez resigned from his position as president, but not from his seat on the Council.

Martinez, De Leon, and Cedillo said after a secret recording of a private conversation between three city council members and powerful Los Angeles County Labor Federation president Ron Herrera surfaced on social media a year ago. Pressure is mounting to resign. Affects future redraws of the city of the voting precinct.

In a secret recording, Martinez and De Leon can be heard making racist comments about the toddler of city councilman Mike Bonin, who is black.

The four Latino leaders also spoke out about how best to redraw the city’s reorganization map to benefit them, an action that could undermine black political representation in Los Angeles. also talked.

The controversial audio that sparked the scandal involved a debate over the process of redrawing congressional district boundaries last year.

In a statement, Martinez said he spoke out of “extreme frustration and anger,” and the context of the October 2021 conversation was “concerns about the redistricting process and its impact on communities of color. concerns about possible adverse effects.”

She and two of her council members expressed dissatisfaction with the map proposed by the city’s 21-member rezoning committee. The council’s district was redrawn once in her decade, and the council was discussing its options at that time.

City News Service contributed to this report