By Randy Economy
www.Economy4ABC.Blogspot.com
August 4, 2010
5:20 p.m.
LOS ANGELES –
Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcon and his wife Flora have been slammed with 24 felony charges ranging from
voter fraud to perjury.
Lets face it. Alarcon and his political career is over, and he needs to resign from the Los Angeles
City Council as soon as possible.
Alarcon and his wife's
indictment on perjury, voter fraud and other crimes, was from a result of a 15-month investigation into allegations the the couple illegally claimed a
Panorama City house as his residence.
The 24-count felony indictment was returned late Friday by the
Grand Jury and it was unsealed this morning. Alarcon, 56, and his wife, Flora Montes De Oca Alarcon, surrendered and were arraigned before Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza.
The
District Attorney’s office requested bail set at $45,000 for Alarcon and $20,000 for his wife.
The Public Integrity Division launched an investigation after receiving a written complaint that the councilman was living at a residence outside his district, said Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Lentz Snyder, assistant head deputy of the Public Integrity Division.
Several of his key staff members from Alarcon, appeared before the
Los Angeles County Grand Jury last month to testify against him. Look for a who's who of Los Angeles
City Hall to testify in this upcoming trial.
I hope this trial is televised....
Alarcon
Chief of Staff Saeed Ali, Communications Director Becca Doten, Legislative Aide Ackley Padilla (who is the brother of state Sen.
Alex Padilla)., Office Manager Lidia Soto and his Executive Assistant Nancy Hodges were all called to appear before the Grand Jury to testify in the investigation. Look for all of them and many other to be on the "witness list" in the upcoming trial.
Also considered a key witness will be his cousin John de
la Rosa who serves as his district director. A total of 31 people appeared before the Grand Jury.
Alarcon, who was first elected to the Los Angeles City Council’s 7th District in 1993, served as a State Senator from 1998 until 2006, when he termed out. Alarcon was elected to the state Assembly on Nov. 5, 2006. In that same election, voters approved Measure R, changing
term limit conditions that allowed Alarcon to again run for the City Council.
On Dec. 11, 2006, Alarcon declared his intent to become a City Council candidate, claiming that he lived at 14451 Nordhoff St. in Panorama City, a residence owned by his wife. He also re-registered to vote, claiming the same address.
He was elected to the 7th District council seat in March 2007 and re-elected in March 2009.
In the summer of 2007, Alarcon tried unsuccessfully to have the 7th District’s boundaries redrawn to include his wife’s Sun Valley home.
The indictment charges him with two felony counts of filing a false declaration of candidacy on Dec. 6, 2006 and again on Nov. 6, 2008. The indictment charges him with seven counts of voter fraud, alleging he
fraudulently voted in elections in 2007, 2008 and 2009. He’s also charged with nine counts of perjury, including three for allegedly filing false
driver’s license applications.
Flora Montes de Oca Alarcon is charged with three counts of perjury for allegedly claiming that she lived at the Nordhoff address on a Provisional Voting Ballot, in registering to vote and on a driver’s license application. She also is charged with three counts of voter fraud.
Image via Wikipedia
