Los Angeles City Hall Corruption Case

It Is Time For “City Staffer B” To Come Clean

Now that his former boss has pleaded guilty, it is time for John Lee to reveal to his constituents if he is the person referred to in the indictment.

“City Staffer told defendant ENGLANDER to tell the FBI that defendant ENGLANDER had received casino chips from Businessperson A, but that defendant ENGLANDER had returned those chips after gambling.”

- Plea Agreement For Defendant Mitchell Englander

When the charges against former Los Angeles City Councilmember Mitchell Englander were first released, his former Chief of Staff, John Lee, admitted that he had been one of the revelers on a corruption fueled trip to Las Vegas. A spokesperson refused to provide any additional details claiming that the case was “an ongoing legal proceeding [and that] Councilmember Lee wants to respect the process”. That excuse came to an end last week when Englander signed a plea agreement that will result in his becoming a felon.

John Lee with Granada Hills Charter High School’s Brian Bauer (from Lee’s Twitter feed)

First and foremost, Lee needs to specifically state if he is “City Staffer B” as named in the charging documents against Englander. If he is, then the claim that he “was unaware of any illegal activities for which Councilmember Englander is being charged” is disputed by the “Factual Basis” document signed by his boss. These include being the recipient of illegal gifts provided by a businessman looking to curry favor from an elected representative and his staff as well as trying to obstruct justice in an FBI investigation. Most specifically “City Staffer” coordinated testimony with Englander regarding the receipt of casino chips.

After Lee and his supporters spent over $850,000 on an often dirty re-election campaign, only 801 votes separated the incumbent and his opponent, Loraine Lundquist. This represents 1.23% of the 65,213 votes…