Santa Ana Mayor Vicente Sarmiento’s supervisorial campaign was funded in great part by attorneys who regularly sue police departments and cities on behalf of criminals, according to a recent Voice of OC article which stated:
Much of Sarmiento’s largest funding came from attorneys who have represented the family of Brandon Lopez – a cousin of Santa Ana Councilman Johnathan Hernandez who was shot and killed in Santa Ana by Anaheim police in September. The attorneys are the Alhambra-based law firm of Sarmiento’s sister, Vicki Sarmiento, as well as Woodland Hills-based Dale Galipo (Vicki’s husband), who has sued on behalf of families of people killed by police in Santa Ana and Anaheim.
Sarmiento and his fellow anti-police City Council Members have been very busy in recent months trying to launch a Santa Ana Police Oversight Commission. Of course they do not want background checks of Commission members – in fact City Councilman Johnathan Hernandez has pushed for the Commission to include actual criminals (who he refers to as being justice-impacted).
Alarmingly Sarmiento and Hernandez also want to give this Commission subpoena power.
Are Sarmiento and company actually looking to launch this new Commission so that they can more easily convict police officers of crimes – and then Sarmiento’s family can sue the SAPD and our city for millions of dollars again and again?
No wonder the anti-police lawyers backed Sarmiento!
Fortunately Sarmiento is only 500 votes ahead of his challenger, Kim Bernice Nguyen. There are still many votes to be counted. Hopefully Nguyen will prevail.
The good news is that all of Santa Ana’s anti-police City Council candidates lost in the November General Election. Our new Mayor, Valerie Amezcua, supports our police as do our Council incumbents, who all appear to have won.
The people of Santa Ana are sick and tired of criminals and the politicians who support them!
Are Politicians getting kickbacks from attorneys commonplace or is that unique to Santa Ana?
In California it is not uncommon. Sarmiento’s case is particularly egregious as it involves his own family, who is already suing our city re the Brandon Lopez case.
Good