[PICTURED: He already has to be city attorney/controller as private citizen. May as well be mayor as public figure.]
When you read this, it's NO WONDER Los Angeles City Council is flappin' around, trying to come up with ways to limit the public comment speakers (gadflies) at city hall.
Just as I thought I was close to settling my victorious (winning) FEDERAL lawsuit vs TRUTANICH & City of Los Angeles, I was told Trutanich knuckled down, and decided to play a LONG game of hardball, by hiring the pricey outside counsel firm of Meyers-Nave, to drag Zuma Dogg, Matt Dowd (and the NINE other Venice performers on the lawsuit) through depositions, discovery and a jury trial. NOT to decide who is right or wrong. But simply to award a damages amount for DOWD/DOGG (and the nine others).
Meyers-Nave has three attorneys and a clerk on our case. Deborah Fox makes $350 and hour. The other attorneys are between $250-$300 and hour. And the clerk makes $125 an hour.
AND, the City has to pick up DOWD/DOGG (and the NINE others') attorney fees. And our attorney is approved by the Federal judge at $750 and hour.
If this goes all the way through trial, it could be a million dollars for our attorney, alone. THEN, Truanich's outside counsel. (By the way, at least FIFTEEN [15] Meyers-Nave attorneys contributed to Carmen Trutanich's City Attorney campaign. And now, he has hired them for our settlement, which will certainly end up costing a lot more than the settlement DOWD/DOGG proposed.)
SO, when ZD heard all of this was in play, cause Truanich feels like doing this, ZUMA DOGG RETURNED TO COUNCIL CHAMBERS (after a several month hiatus from attending the council meetings) on Feb 29, 2012 to notify council of this matter.
AND, while ZD was away on hiatus, and not attending the meetings, and didn't plan on attending them, anymore, cause he thought he was moving toward a settlement, a couple things happened:
a) News of FBI probe of city hall broke.
b) City of L.A. lost BIG Superior Court case in October 2011 regarding LA Housing Department illegally citing Building and Safety code, among other shady bamboozles, and that the FBI is probing the department, including RENT ESCROW ACCOUNT PROGRAM (REAP), which you have heard Zuma Dogg warn council about for six years, literally hundreds and hundreds of times, before news of the FBI probe broke. (Although ZD was SCREAMING for the FBI to invade city hall.) IT HAPPENED WHILE ON HIATUS!
SEE THE PUBLIC COMMENT VIDEOS IN THE EMBEDDED COLUMN ON RIGHT SIDE OF THIS BLOG: I spoke about this issue, at every city council meeting through March, and you can see that in any and all of the videos embedded on this blog.
AND TODAY I HEARD, L.A. HOUSING INSPECTORS are claiming they are/will no longer cite for violations, AT ALL. Adding that only a supervisor may do that now, but the supervisors are too busy. (Aka: Neither inspectors or supervisors are putting THEIR name on anything, after ZD turned up the heat, and exposed the investigation.)
SAD TO SAY, SHADY/CORRUPT/ILLEGAL MONEY OF THE L.A. HOUSING DEPARTMENT WAS THE ONLY REVENUE THE CITY WAS GENERATING: So sorry to cut off the revenue stream. ZD doesn't like a dirty stream. BAD for the environment. (Business and housing environment, that is.)
SUMMARY: Since Carmen "The Clown" Trutanich wouldn't do his job, after 30 Zuma Dogg public comments on LAHD corruption, LAHD inspectors now say they are not allowed to cite for violations, only a supervisor may; and they are all too busy. I am glad my grueling efforts trekking downtown, for early morning meetings, wasn't a waste of time. No one in the city benefits by corruption, except the councilmembers and inspectors.
