Herb Wesson: Will L.A. Council President Turn Over Damning Emails in Redistricting Lawsuit?

Fred Harper

Herb Wesson

Los Angeles City Council President Herb Wesson and other council members better hope they don't have any embarrassing emails or texts on their computers or cell phones.

In a hard-charging legal move on Thursday, Beverly Hills civil rights attorney Leo Terrell sent out California Public Records Act requests to Wesson, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, City Attorney Carmen Trutanich, each City Council member, and other government leaders.

The attorney, who has filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles, hopes to obtain potentially damning evidence that Wesson and other council members unlawfully used race as the basis for redrawing maps for council districts 8, 9, and 10.

Terrell tells L.A. Weekly that the public records act requests are "another way to get documents the city of L.A. is concealing." He expects to find "smoking gun evidence" that African American politician Wesson "used race to disenfranchise other minorities. That's what's appalling."

Terrell filed a federal lawsuit on the behalf of residents in council districts 8, 9, and 10. That lawsuit was combined this week with another federal lawsuit brought by Koreatown residents, who are peeved at Wesson and crew for his controversial, and possibly illegal, handling of redrawing L.A. City Council districts in 2012.

Terrell charges that Wesson was merely looking out for his own political career during the redistricting process, and didn't care one whit about voters in South Los Angeles and Koreatown.

"He diluted the African American voting block in the 8th and 9th districts to build up an African American voting block for himself in his own district," charges Terrell.

Wesson represents Council District 10.

Terrell says in a press release, "We know why the city is stalling. This process has already been an embarrassment because of the videotaped blunders of City Council President Herb Wesson. We know there is more there."

With more of these kinds of legal moves expected, the federal lawsuits have the potential to shine a bright light on City Hall's insider culture and back-room dealings and generate major scandal. The cases are expected to continue throughout 2013 and possibly into 2014. Wesson and other council members may be in for a very bumpy ride.

Contact Patrick Range McDonald at pmcdonald@laweekly.com.

Tags:

civil rights, Herb Wesson, Koreatown, Leo Terrell, Patrick Range McDonald, redistricting, South Los Angeles

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DonS

Let's not forget that Weston's aide, Andrew Westall, chaired the redistricting commission and did his dirtywork.

eyeonthings

I have been keeping an Eye on Wesson in my CD10 community magazine for 5 years. I have often made record requests from his office. In a particularly contentious issue I discovered that the more revealing records were withheld from my first request. I discovered it when the records showed up in a city agency I had also requested records from. So I made a second request asking for those same records from Wesson. They were sent to me. I also discovered, among the many emails I asked for and received, that one of his deputies, Sylvia Lacy, had told an LAFD chief that she did indeed have a signed document he claimed she could not have. The second request from us asked for a copy of that document. She confessed they did not have one. I have watched his shenanigans for years. When he became head of City Council I knew things would not go well for him.

scottzwartz topcommenter

Leo Terrell is a good man and fine attorney.

I suggest that the article provide more detailed information. Can it provide a link to the PRA request that went to Wesson and provide the name and case number for the federal case sow e can look it upon PACER? Also, a link to a pdf of the Complaint would help inform readers.

The more LA Weekly can link to the original sources, the better it is for the readers. The best way for readers to protect themselves from misleading reporting (I am thinking LA Times right now) is to have a link to the basic data itself.

steward

from my own experience...I lost track of how many times the census bureau knocked on our door to ask how many hispanics/latinos were living in our house

It was as if they were were basically looking for as many Hispanic/latinos, and I felt pressured to say yes we were latinos..just to get them from coming back to our door again.

One census worker admitted that they were doing a census on latinos specifically...so that was all I needed to hear....and here we are...a couple years later....still wondering what the purpose of this is all about...does anyone win? I don't think so!

Thetruth28

THIS IS HORRIBLE!!! I can't believe LA Weekly is really adding fuel to the separation of two wonderful cultures that truly have a lot in common and have to live with each other. LA Weekly, you should be using your resources to unite the community and not posting damaging articles like this, specially knowing the violent history of the of the two. Shame on you for feeding more hate to our community. You sit behind your desk and hang out at over charged hipster coffee shops on the heart of our city because it makes you feel “urban”, but what would you know about what really goes on in the heart of LA your just a selfish YUPPIE.

LA… this is the white devil trying to divide our community. Segregating us to live in the ghetto is not enough to them. They love to see us divided because divided we are less strong than they are. Let’s not feed into all this and support one another and elect the person that can truly help our community regardless of his race.

patrick.range.mcdonald

@garciaq11 From what Leo Terrell and many others say, it was Herb Wesson and the City Council who literally divided various communities with the redistricting process. Lawsuits were filed by both Korean American and African American residents to fight that, and they are working together to fight redistricting. As a reporter for the Weekly, I don't hold anywhere near the power that Wesson and company hold to make laws and push forward policies that directly impacts the everyday lives of Angelenos. I believe your statements are directed at the wrong person. I wish you well. Take care, Patrick Range McDonald, LA Weekly

efrainrojas

@garciaq11 Obviously garciaq11 is a lackey for Wesson. Gerrymandering is a hallowed tradition in the California Democratic party. Herb is a creep concerned only with his career.