Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Page 3
Reports: Candidates Spent Over $6 Million in City Attorney Contest
By SHERRI M. OKAMOTO, Staff Writer
Spending by the two candidates seeking the post of Los Angeles city attorney in today’s runoff has topped $6 million, with more than $2 million of that spent in the 10 weeks since the primary, filings show.
Over the 10-day period covered by the reports filed Friday with the City Ethics Commission, Weiss reported raising double the amount of contributions as his opponent—$173,922 to Trutanich’s reported $81,229—leaving him with more cash on hand than his opponent to close out the bitterly contested battle the post being vacated by City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo.
According to the reports, Trutanich has spent nearly $1.2 million during the runoff election, and Weiss has spent over $900,000.
Weiss also raised a total of $897,582 between May 3 to May 13 and has $91,174 in cash on hand, while Trutanich raised $810,219 during that same period and received matching funds of $420,000, but was left with $81,498 on hand.
Weiss’ report indicated one refund of $1,000 was made. The Weiss campaign had previously issued a statement indicating that it would return approximately $20,000 raised at an April 27 Beverly Hills fundraiser which listed Kelly Candaele, then a member of the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System Board of Directors, as one of six hosts.
City commissioners and board appointees are barred from appearing on fundraising invitations. Candaele resigned from the retirement board position April 28.
While the Weiss campaign could not be reached for comment yesterday, it issued a press release Saturday claiming that the Trutanich campaign canceled many of their television advertisements over the weekend due to a lack of campaign funds.
Weiss campaign consultant Ace Smith was quoted as saying the weekend before an election is “a critical time to reach out to voters,” and the suspension of television advertising by the Trutanich campaign “clearly shows that our campaign is on the path to victory and that the Trutanich campaign is coming apart at the seams.”
The Trutanich campaign could not be reached for comment.
Contributors to Weiss’ campaign included over 85 attorneys, 23 of whom where from Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP, a 190-member firm headquartered in San Diego.
The owner and the president of the Los Angeles Dodgers each gave Weiss $1,000, and the owner of the Staples Center also contributed $1,000.
Fellow Councilman Greig Smith gave $100, and a $1,000 donation came from the Las Lomas Land Company, a developer which sued the city in 2008 for halting a massive multi-use development project planned for a hillside just north of the interchange of the 5 and 14 freeways.
Trutanich’s supported included 45 attorneys, including six from Geragos & Geragos, and Long Beach City Councilman Cary I. DeLong. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge J. D. Lord contributed $500.
Copyright 2009, Metropolitan News Company