One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Judge Throws Out Perjury and Fraud Charges Against Councilman, Prosecutors Refile Exact Same Charges Hours Later
District Attorney Steve Cooley filed perjury and fraud charges against City Councilman Richard Alarcon and his wife Flora Montes de Oca Alarcon today—the exact same charges that a Superior Court judge threw out just hours earlier today.
The charges were related to allegations that the city councilman lived outside the district he represents and lied about his address—allegations we first wrote about over two years ago.
Prosecutors say that Alarcon and his wife lived in Sun Valley but lied and claimed that he lived in Panorama City so he could represent the 7th District. Photos of his shabby-looking house circulated just a few months after the grand jury indictment in July 2010, but Alarcon explained that he was afraid to live in his Panorama City home after a break-in.
Alarcon has long contested the charges against him and his wife, and he applauded the judge who dismissed the case in an interview with City News Service after the charges were dropped (but before they were refiled): "My wife and I are obviously very pleased with the judge's ruling today. We have maintained our innocence throughout this process and have always believed that when all of the evidence is considered, we would be found innocent."
Last month Judge Kathleen Kennedy said that prosecutors hadn't considered evidence that favored Alarcon's position (though it's not clear from news reports what this evidence was). District Attorney Steve Cooley disputed this: "The grand jury transcripts clearly show that our prosecutors did indeed present evidence submitted by the councilman and his wife. The grand jury chose not to consider it, as is their right."
Here's how the new/old charges break down according to City News Service:
Alarcon, 58, is charged with 18 counts -- two felony counts of filing a false declaration of candidacy in December 2006 and November 2008; seven felony counts of fraudulent voting in elections in 2007, 2008 and 2009; and nine counts of perjury, including three for allegedly filing false driver's license applications. Flora Montes de Oca Alarcon, 46, is charged with three counts of perjury for allegedly claiming she lived at a Panorama City home within Alarcon's 7th District on a provisional voting ballot, in registering to vote and on a drivers license application, along with three counts of fraudulent voting involving elections in 2008 and 2009.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
