LA Councilmember Imelda Padilla Hires Former State Assembly Staffer Found To Have Violated Sexual Harassment Policy

Newly elected L.A. City Councilmember Imelda Padilla has hired as her district director a former state capitol employee who violated a policy against sexual harassment, according to Human Resources Office of the Assembly Rules Committee documents.

Mark Lomeli was chief of staff to Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson) at the time of alleged acts in 2016; the allegations and findings came to light two years later.

Padilla defeated Marisa Alcaraz in a June special election to become the council member representing District 6, which stretches from Sun Valley west to Lake Balboa in the San Fernando Valley. She came to office promising to restore trust in city government after Nury Martinez resigned the seat, following the release of recordings in which she made racist remarks.

Padilla’s office issued a statement in response to questions about the hiring of Lomeli:

Lomeli did not respond to an emailed request for comment.

A district director typically oversees constituent services and supervises several people in a council office. The role is often the most high-profile public-facing member of a council member’s staff.

[Editor's note: Padilla’s district director immediately before Lomeli is the son of a former LAist editor.]

About the findings

The allegations against Lomeli first surfaced in 2018, two years after the incidents and during the height of the #MeToo movement.

Many of the details of the allegations were redacted from the Assembly Rules Committee documents. The first incident was filed as a complaint of sexual assault — the response from the committee references a violation of the Assembly's policy against sexual harassment.

A woman told investigators with the Assembly Rules Committee that Lomeli “grabbed [her] breasts, vagina, buttocks, and pushed his penis area on me,” according to the heavily redacted records.

Investigators determined the allegation was “substantiated, that is, it is more likely than not that the alleged conduct did occur.”

A second woman told investigators she received “unprofessional text messages” from Lomeli that offended her. The investigators also found the allegation to likely be true. The women are not identified in the records.

The full confidential investigation report was not released because Assembly Chief Administrative Officer Lia Lopez said it is subject to attorney-client privilege.

How Lomeli responded at the time

Lomeli appealed the findings to the chair and vice chair of the rules committee. The appeal was rejected.

“After a thorough review and consideration of your appeal, it has been determined that the complaint filed against you received a fair evaluation,” stated a letter to Lomeli in July 2019.

An outside independent attorney conducted the investigation. He interviewed Lomeli and 15 witnesses, according to the documents.

Lomeli had left Gipson’s office by the time of the findings. He worked for Gipson for a little over three years.

Lomeli has since worked as a government and public affairs manager for Marathon Petroleum Corporation and as a principal consultant for CoAction Strategies, according to his LinkedIn page.

LAist requested documents from the state earlier this week to verify news reports from 2019 about the allegations and findings. Knock LA first reported his hiring earlier Friday.

Padilla's statement on why he was hired

Padilla’s office statement said, “The Councilmember brought on Mr. Lomeli with the directive to bring his extensive intergovernmental and team management experience to hit the ground running and lead our field operation to ensure that our constituents' concerns and city service needs are addressed swiftly and with utmost urgency.”