5 takeaways from former OC Supervisor Andrew Do's guilty plea

Andrew Do was a powerful force in Orange County politics for nearly a decade — until, over the past few weeks, he was compelled to resign his seat on the Board of Supervisors and admit to conspiracy to steal taxpayer funds as part of a federal plea deal.

Do pleaded guilty on Thursday at the federal courthouse in downtown Santa Ana.

For nearly a year, LAist has been investigating Do's role in directing millions of taxpayer dollars to a nonprofit, Viet America Society (VAS), linked to his daughter, Rhiannon Do. The money was meant to feed seniors during the pandemic and to build a Vietnam War memorial. Federal prosecutors say just 15% of the money earmarked for meals was actually used for that purpose.

Here are five takeaways from Do's guilty plea:

Do's punishment is uncertain

Why? The court is not bound by the plea deal's proposed penalties.

Do pleaded guilty to "conspiracy to commit bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds."

That crime calls for a maximum five years in prison. Do's plea agreement also requires him to pay a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the crime; and full restitution to victims, estimated between $550,000 and $730,500.

Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer told reporters after Do's court hearing Thursday that any funds recovered from Do and co-conspirators would be returned to the federal government.

The judge presiding over the case, U.S. District Court James Selna, emphasized in court that he is not bound by the calculations agreed to by Do and federal authorities in the plea deal. He also said he could decide on Do's sentencing "based on additional facts" beyond those laid out in the plea agreement.

Do is scheduled to be sentenced on March 31, 2025.

Some say the plea deal is too light

Lawrence Rosenthal, a former federal prosecutor who now teaches at Chapman University's Fowler School of Law, called the plea deal "a very favorable disposition for Mr. Do."

Tracy La, who heads the Little Saigon community organization VietRISE, told LAist the penalties for Do laid out on the plea deal were "absolutely not adequate punishment."

"At a time when law enforcement is pushing a tough on crime narrative … it shows actually how weak law enforcement is on something this exorbitant, this impactful, that affects thousands of people," La said. "It shows the extent of [Do's] connection to people in power."

Katherine White, who works with the street medicine organization Wound Walk OC, attended Do's court appearance this week. She said Do was "getting a lighter consequence than I feel that he deserves."

She said the pandemic relief money was supposed to help people in distress from COVID-19 and the resulting economic fallout.

"Those people continue to suffer today while somebody else got houses and got to line their pockets," she said.

The bribes Do admitted to in his plea agreement included $385,000 that VAS and several of its vendors gave to his daughter Rhiannon Do for a downpayment on a house in Tustin.

Do's former colleague, O.C. Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, also said Do's crimes "should be met with more severe consequences," in a statement following Do's court appearance.

"Although we are grateful by the swiftness of the prosecution in the case and are glad to hear that the investigations are ongoing, we believe that a maximum five-year sentence, that also allows Do to shield his family members from prosecution, is not nearly in line with the level and extent of his criminal conduct and the damage he has done to the residents of his district and the Public’s trust," Sarmiento wrote.

Do was subdued in court … and largely alone

Do appeared for his court hearing in a dark blue suit and brown leather shoes, flanked by his lawyers, Paul Meyer and Eliot Krieger. His wife, Cheri Pham, the assistant presiding judge of the Orange County Superior Court, was not there. Nor was his daughter Rhiannon Do, whose separate agreement with authorities — which does not include criminal charges — is tied to her father's plea deal.

Before the hearing started, Do reached over a row of benches to accept a hug from Newport Beach criminal defense attorney Ed Welbourn. After the hearing, Welbourn told LAist he was there "as a friend."

Do read a short written statement during the hearing, in which he said, "I have great sorrow for my actions. I want to apologize to my family and the people who depended on me."

He admitted to all of the facts laid out in the plea agreement, including using $15,000 in kickbacks from VAS to pay his credit card bills.

It was a stark departure from his response to LAist reporter Nick Gerda's initial reporting on the millions Do directed to VAS and a related nonprofit led by his daughter without disclosing the family tie. Shortly after that story ran, Do wrote an op-ed in the Orange County Register attacking Gerda's reporting. At another point, he released a statement on county letterhead calling on LAist to fire Gerda.

New details about Rhiannon Do's plea deal

Selna emphasized that Do's plea agreement is contingent upon his daughter, Rhiannon Do, fulfilling her agreement with federal authorities. That deal, called a "diversion agreement," lets her avoid criminal charges, but subjects her to three years probation and requires her to cooperate with authorities in the ongoing investigation.

Her agreement also stipulates that she will attend school, including preparing for the State Bar exam (Rhiannon is a third-year law student at UC Irvine), or work. Applicants to the State Bar are generally required to disclose pending criminal matters, and they have to submit a moral character application that gets reviewed by the Bar.

When deciding whether to grant a law license despite prior misconduct by an applicant, the Bar takes into consideration the severity of the misconduct, whether there was more than one act, and whether there were any rehabilitation efforts, among other factors.

La, from VietRISE, called the requirement that Rhiannon study for the State Bar exam "a strange punishment."

"That's just saying, like, 'Yeah, you messed up a little bit but we still want you to succeed. And you being accountable to the crime you committed is continuing to do what you've been doing anyway,'" La said.

Are there more 'shoes to drop?'

Federal investigators have said Do's plea deal is just the first step in an ongoing investigation. For one thing, the plea agreement discusses several co-conspirators who have yet to be named. Remember: When federal prosecutors announced Do's plea deal, they said of the $9.3 million he directed to his daughter's nonprofit just 15% went to help needy people. Even with the forfeiture of two properties — including his daughter's $1 million Tustin home — and other conditions of the plea deal, that still leave millions of public funds unaccounted for.

LAist has reported on other alleged misuse of public funds tied to Andrew Do, including the unfinished Vietnam War memorial in O.C.'s Mile Square Park, and a mental health contract given to a nonprofit that hired Do's former chief of staff's wife to the work. The county told LAist the work was never turned in.

"I don't think this is the last of the shoes to drop," said White of Wound Walk.

Catch up on the investigation

In November 2023, LAist began investigating how millions in public taxpayer dollars were spent. In total, LAist has uncovered public records showing more than $13 million in public money that was approved to a little-known nonprofit that records state was led on and off by Rhiannon Do. Most of that money was directed to the group by Supervisor Do outside of the public’s view and never appeared on public meeting agendas. He did not publicly disclose his family ties.

Much of the known funding came from federal coronavirus relief money.

• Read the story that launched the investigation: Top OC official helped direct millions to his daughter’s center without disclosing family connection
• Since LAist started reporting, we’ve also uncovered the group was two years overdue in completing a required audit into whether the meal funds were spent appropriately.
• And LAist found the amount of taxpayer money directed to the nonprofit was much larger than initially known. It totals at least $13.5 million in county funding — tallied from government records obtained and published by LAist. 
• After our reporting, O.C. officials wrote demand letters to the nonprofit saying millions in funding were unaccounted for. They warned the nonprofit that it could be forced to repay the funds.
• And, LAist found the nonprofit missed a deadline set by county officials to provide proof about how funding for meals were spent.
• On Aug. 2, LAist reported O.C. officials were demanding the refund of more than $3 million in public funds awarded by Do to VAS and another nonprofit, Hand to Hand.
• Six days later, LAist reported Orange County officials had expanded demands for refunds of millions in tax dollars from the nonprofits and threatened legal action.
• On Aug. 15, LAist reported O.C. officials sued VAS and its key officers and associated businesses, including Rhiannon Do. The lawsuit alleges that county money was illegally used to purchase five homes and was converted into cash through ATM transactions. 
• Then, on Aug. 19, LAist reported O.C. officials had announced a second lawsuit against Hand to Hand and its CEO to recover millions of taxpayer dollars that were directed by Supervisor Do.
• LAist broke the news on Aug. 22 that federal agents were searching Rhiannon Do's home in Tustin. Later that day, Supervisor Do's home, and other properties, were also raided.
• On Oct. 16, LAist reported that the wife of Supervisor Do's top aide was hired for a $275,000 contract. County officials say the work was never turned in and two days later LAist reported that a court filing confirmed a federal grand jury had been convened and subpoenas issued.
• Six days later, federal prosecutors announced Andrew Do had agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery. They said Do accepted over $550,000 in bribes for directing and voting in favor of more than $10 million in COVID funds to VAS. He resigned as supervisor the same day.

How to watchdog local government

One of the best things you can do to hold officials accountable is pay attention.

Your city council, board of supervisors, school board and more all hold public meetings that anybody can attend. These are times you can talk to your elected officials directly and hear about the policies they’re voting on that affect your community.

• Read tips on how to get involved.
• The next scheduled board meeting is Tuesday, Nov. 5. You can check out the O.C. Board of Supervisors full calendar here.
• Learn how to submit a public comment to the O.C. Board of Supervisors.

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