Why has Andrew Do been sailing while awaiting sentencing?

After disgraced former Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do pleaded guilty in court last year, he disappeared from public view. That is, until recent court filings revealed he has been volunteering with the Los Angeles Maritime Institute — teaching sailing to disadvantaged kids.

So, I headed to San Pedro to see if I could catch a glimpse of him.

Do wasn’t there on that warm Friday afternoon. The institute is right by the iconic San Pedro Fish Market. Families, tourists and locals alike strolled the pier, and a cruise ship blasting “YMCA” floated past. Two sailboats were anchored off the shore, one prominently displaying the name Irving Johnson.

I knew I'd found the right boat — a court filing included a photo of Do aboard the Irving Johnson.

The institute's Jonah Warshay is a captain of one of those sailboats. He confirmed Do has been volunteering a few times a month — sometimes even serving as cook.

“It's been very helpful having him,” Warshay told me.

Warshay recalled Do as having “such a positive attitude,” adding that Do is “well-rounded and educated and just a pleasure to work with and get to know.”

Warshay, however, thought Do was just someone interested in helping out. He said he was unaware that Do had pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge and was awaiting sentencing.

“I don't know what to say,” Warshay said. “I guess, I don't know him that well.”

Do is scheduled to be sentenced on Monday, June 9, in the case in which he was accused lining his pockets with taxpayers’ money meant to feed needy seniors during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prosecutors are calling for the maximum penalty for the federal bribery charge because Do’s actions left people with “empty stomachs and worsened health conditions.”

Warshay asked for details about Do’s case so he could read up.

He said Do started out like any other volunteer, sorting out inventory in a workshop.

“He even started coming on some of our day sails and voyages and learning how to run the ships, set sail, things like that,” Warshay said of Do. “He was even cook for one of our voyages, so it was very helpful having someone dedicated to meals.”

Those details match the court filings. (Scroll down to the end so you can read the court documents for yourself.)

What else do the court filings say?

In Do’s response to prosecutors calling for the maximum sentence, his lawyers said he has been volunteering around 20 hours each week at the maritime institute. Warshay said Do comes in a few times a month — and doesn’t have a steady shift.

Bruce Heyman, executive director at the institute, wrote in a supporting letter filed with court documents that Do “possesses an unwavering ethical compass.”

“The Andrew [Do] that I’ve come to know has been extremely thoughtful, fair and moral. He approaches each task with fairness, empathy and a genuine desire to make a positive difference,” he wrote.

The programs offered at the maritime institute provide STEM access and socioemotional learning experiences to around 7,000 students — over 90% of whom are students of color and attending schools that mostly serve low income students.

Heyman wrote that he is aware Do has pleaded guilty and said he believes it must have been a “lapse of judgment.”

What's the backstory

Do was one of the highest-ranking elected officials in Orange County. He was elected to the Orange County Board of Supervisors from District 1, which encompasses cities including Garden Grove and Westminster. He pleaded guilty to a charge related to accepting $550,000 in bribes for voting in favor of and directing more than $10 million in COVID funds to a charity affiliated with his daughter, Rhiannon Do.

Then Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do at a board meeting back in November 2023.

(

Nick Gerda

/

LAist

)

LAist was the first to report the lack of transparency in Do awarding the contracts to the nonprofit, triggering the federal probe that would ultimately result in Do’s resignation, conviction and pending sentencing.

Prosecutors have called for the maximum sentence saying Andrew Do’s actions hurt "the most exposed residents of the county.” They say he was especially duplicitous, publicly touting the successes of the programs helping needy seniors, even as he had actually “abandoned” them and looted the funding that was supposed to help him.

He tried to cover up the misdeeds by routing the bribes he accepted through the nonprofit affiliated with Rhiannon Do and through payments paid to his other daughter, Ilene Do.

Rhiannon Do made a deal with federal authorities to enter a diversion program. Authorities have taken no public action on Ilene Do.

By involving his adult daughters, the supervisor sought to muddy the trail of funds, prosecutors wrote.

“It was not a spur-of-the-moment lapse of judgment but a sustained effort to evade scrutiny through manipulation of personal relationships and familial trust,” the court documents state.

In his own defense, Do defended and downplayed his actions. He said he was “willfully blinded to the violations” and laid part of the blame on his fellow supervisors. You can read more of his statement below.

The court records

What the prosecution had to say

What the defense had to say

Statement by Los Angeles Maritime Institute executive director Bruce Heyman

Andrew Do's letter to the judge