[TSFH Fan]

It's still not anything "big" IMO, but now we got the DA's office poking around, and talking to the AG"s office, with talks of a civil suit:

District attorney to Carson Mayor Al Robles: Vacate one of two offices
http://www.dailybreeze.com/government-a ... wo-offices


By Sandy Mazza, Daily Breeze

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office is moving to force Carson Mayor Albert Robles from his long-held seat on a regional water board, citing potential conflicts of interest resulting from “serving two masters.”

Prosecutors said Robles never should have sought the City Council seat he won in March 2013 because it overlaps with his duties as an elected board member of the Water Replenishment District of Southern California. By holding both offices, they say, he could potentially vote for items in Carson that would benefit the district, and vice versa.

The District Attorney’s Office is seeking approval from the state attorney general to pursue a civil case against Robles that ultimately could force him to step down from the water board.

The Water Replenishment District oversees groundwater quality, sales and pumping taxes in Carson and parts of South Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley.

SENSITIVE TIME IN CARSON

The legal action, initiated last year after a public complaint was filed against Robles, comes at a sensitive time for Carson and the mayor, who is in the midst of lobbying efforts to attract a $1.7 billion National Football League stadium to town. Additionally, the Los Angeles Times this week published an article probing whether Robles actually lives in Carson, which is a requirement to be on the City Council. Robles’ parents live in the city but his wife and children reside in Los Angeles.

The Attorney General’s Office is reviewing the district attorney’s request for a so-called quo warranto action, which is necessary before a civil suit can be filed against Robles in Los Angeles Superior Court. If victorious, Robles would be forced from his water district office and fined $5,000, according to the proposed legal complaint by the D.A., which he provided to the Daily Breeze.

TWO JOBS ‘INCOMPATIBLE’

“You cannot serve in two offices that are incompatible with each other because, as a public official, you owe full and complete allegiance to the constituents who elected you to that office,” Deputy District Attorney Marian Thompson said. “Our investigation revealed that the two offices are incompatible.”

Robles, however, insists that there is no conflict and that he will not give up either public office without a fight. He has served on the water district board since 1992, making about $100,000 a year from a salary and per-meeting stipends, according to the Times. The part-time Carson mayor’s position pays less than $25,000 annually.

“There is no law that prevents me from holding these two offices,” said Robles, a constitutional law attorney. “So the question is: Is it incompatible for me to be on the Water Replenishment District and be the mayor of Carson? I would submit to you absolutely not. Carson does not have any groundwater rights. Carson does not have a contract with the water district.”

The district’s regulation of groundwater quality, sales and taxes on its pumping and use could indirectly impact Carson residents by causing the city’s private water suppliers to increase rates, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

ONCE LOBBIED COUNCIL

In 2012, before he was elected to the Carson City Council, Robles lobbied the panel to oppose a lawsuit against the Water Replenishment District that could lead to much higher water rates in the city. The district attorney’s complaint cites that incident as an example of competing priorities between the two agencies.

“The very fact that Mr. Robles, as a WRD director, made a presentation before the Carson City Council on this subject ... demonstrates the existence of a significant clash of loyalties between both offices,” the complaint states. “The WRD could develop capital improvement projects that directly impact Carson, a city renowned for its oil and gas industry and infrastructure, requiring city permits and approval by the Carson City Council.”

Robles said the District Attorney’s Office is “threatening” him by urging him to leave office, and argues that no conflicts have arisen since he was elected to the council.

“I’m going to fight it if it goes to court,” he said. “I am in the right, and I’m not a quitter. I’m not going to deny the voters that voted for me and want me to be their representative.”

[Hacksaw]

Contaminated building site which requires constant pumping of toxic waters and on the board of the Water District who oversees these things. What a coincidence.

[bubbaramfan]

Even after the landfill has been closed for 20 years, the shyt just keeps getting deeper.

This kind of stuff is why Inglewood will come out on top. St. Louis and Carson both keep coming up with more and more controversy, while Inglewood quietly goes on without any negative stuff.