It's Over... No Change In Costa Mesa Race Tonight

IT'S OVER...
OK, the Fat Lady is standing in the wings, beginning to wail.  Here's how it looks tonight for the 2014 Costa Mesa City Council municipal election following the 5:00 p.m. release of numbers.  There are NO CHANGES IN THE COSTA MESA ELECTION TODAY.  The counter at the top of the page implies that there will be another count on Monday.  You can see the entire "Results" page HERE.  According to the "What's Left To Count" page, HERE,  there remain only 50 votes county-wide left to be tallied and those are Election Day Paper ballots.  All that remains now is for the Registrar to certify the election next week.  For all practical purposes, this is your final result:

FOLEY IS TOP VOTE-GETTER
Katrina Foley is the top vote-getter in this election.  For the second election in a row the top vote-getter was NOT a Riganista.  Two years ago it was former council woman Sandra Genis.  This time it's Foley, who ended up with 26.5% of the votes.  Mayor Jim Righeimer will retain his seat on the dais by finishing second.  He will finish 47 voters ahead of Jay Humphrey.

WASTE OF VOTES
The also-rans include Lee Ramos finished 4th.  Tony Capitelli finishes far behind Ramos.  Al Melone is next.  Rita Simpson trailed Melone and Chris Bunyan will finish last.

RECOUNT?  DON'T KNOW...
I don't have any idea if Humphrey plans to ask for a recount once Registrar of Voters Neal Kelley certifies the election next week.  He will have 5 days to do so, and to put up the cash to begin the recount.  As I've mentioned before, historically recounts in Orange County don't change things much.  Kelley and his crew do a good job the first time through, as we learned two years ago when John Stephens trailed Gary Monahan by 155 votes.

NO MANDATE!

One thing is clear to me following this election.  Jim Righeimer, despite all his pontification and behaving like a dictator, DOES NOT have a mandate from the voters of this city.  The resounding defeat of his Charter scheme in two consecutive elections by increasing margins demonstrates that the voters are not buying what he's selling.  The defeat of many of his pals in this election further demonstrates the voter's views on him and his behavior.  He should not expect the heat to be lifted after this election.  Quite the contrary... he should expect even more scrutiny.

COMPROMISE NOT LIKELY
In a recent article Foley promised to seek compromise.  Well, check the weather report for Hades... it takes two sides to compromise and the current - and future - majority has shown NO inclination to compromise on anything.  No, what we will see is more contentiousness, more bickering, more angry speakers taking the majority to task.  And we'll see more unilateral, partisan political maneuvering by Righeimer and his group.

I EXPECT MORE DEPARTURES
What do I expect to see as a result of this election?  Well, more defections of public safety folks, for one.  I won't be surprised if we see even more police officers depart or retire early.  I won't be surprised at all to see several of the so-called "miscellaneous employees" leave after the council gutted their contract and left them back where they were a decade ago.  And, I expect recruiting - already very difficult - to become even more so with the specter of two more years of this administration.

A TOUGH JOB GETS TOUGHER
Policing this city is going to become extraordinarily difficult.  With the AB 109 releases already infesting our community, group homes growing like mushrooms and bringing with them increases in crimes and Proposition 47 redefining crimes and their punishment all add up to more work for the cops.  We're so understaffed that it is almost criminal in and of itself.  Jeremiah Dobruck captured part of the problem in an article in the Daily Pilot today, HERE, which discusses the impact of fewer police officers and the DUI arrests.  If you read that article you'll likely come away feeling VERY unhappy.

Delgadillo Under The Influence

A SAD START TO MY DAY
It was with great sadness that I read Lauren Williams report in the Daily Pilot this morning, HERE, that told us that Costa Mesa police detective Mike Delgadillo had a blood alcohol level of 0.14 - nearly twice the legal limit - when he crashed his car into a pillar on Bristol Street the evening of March 5, 2013.  An interesting bit of online editing placed Williams' story immediately adjacent to one about a program at Newport Harbor High School that was intended to make the kids aware of DUI accidents.

MORE PAIN FOR SURVIVORS
That accident that took his life was tragic enough, but this revelation rips the scab off this slow-healing wound and adds to the pain felt by his family, friends and co-workers.  And, it's very likely that some will now use this news to denigrate this man, who placed his life on the line for the residents of our community for 32 years.

IRONY
And, of course, there is a tragic irony to this news, too.  Delgadillo's compatriots on the CMPD have been leaders in apprehending drivers for DUI, with several officers totalling more than 100 such arrests for several years running and Officer Kha Bao leading the pack with more than 400 such arrests two years ago and 200 last year.

LOOKING FOR A SILVER LINING
Some will look for a silver lining to this tragic event - some kind of life lesson that can be learned from the passing of this man and the circumstances that took his life.  Others may choose to attempt to dig deeper for some "good reason" for this event, including pillorying the establishment or establishments where he was drinking before his death, in an attempt to spread the blame.

SHOULD WE HAVE DONE MORE?
Others may try to look back and criticize themselves for not recognizing the circumstances that caused Delgadillo to drink and drive and for not doing more to help him.

SAD FACTS
None of that changes the facts.  A distinguished officer, a man who served our community with honor for more than three decades, used bad judgment the last night of his life and died as a result.  We continue to offer our condolences to his family and to his co-workers at the CMPD on the loss of this fine man.

Righeimer's Outlandish Obfuscation(Corrected)

SORRY - GOTTA SAY IT!
I was going to let my two previous posts Friday ferment over the weekend so you could just relax and not worry too much about your blood pressure. Then, late that afternoon, the editors of the Daily Pilot published a commentary by Costa Mesa Planning Commission Chairman Jim Righeimer, first on the OC Now blog, then shortly thereafter on the Daily Pilot blog. It will appear in print in the Daily Pilot Saturday morning. You can read the full text from the OC Now blog HERE, which includes my knee-jerk reaction in the form of a comment.

SELF-SERVING OBFUSCATION
Before I dissect Righeimer's drivel for you I must make a general comment. This is the worst piece of self-serving obfuscation I've ever seen published by a local public official. It's clear from reading Righeimer's rant that he's throwing up a smoke screen to try to distract Costa Mesa voters from his misbehavior at the DUI checkpoint a week ago. That being said, let us move forward.

HE STARTS WITH A LIE...
Right off the bat Righeimer begins with a lie. He states, "At 6:30 p.m. Sept. 23, 3,200 commuters sat in an unnecessary traffic jam because the Costa Mesa Police Department decided to run a sobriety check point at a primary intersection to the off-ramps of the San Diego (405) Freeway at Harbor Boulevard." Well, Righeimer had the date off by a full week! That DUI checkpoint occurred on Thursday, September 16th, 2010. And his assertion that it was "unnecessary" is not for him to say - it's up to the city management and the police department, not some frustrated, multiple-loser hack politician. NOTE: I received a telephone call from the editor of the Daily Pilot at 9 a.m. Monday informing me it was THEIR fault that the date was incorrectly stated in Righeimer's article. Righeimer apparently said "last Thursday" in his submission and the Associated Press Style Book requires them to use the actual date, so the editor got it wrong. I apologize to Righeimer for saying he lied about this date.

THE ONLY ONE WHO CONFRONTED POLICE
He goes on to gripe about being delayed getting to the Estancia High School football game, which I can certainly understand. However, he didn't have a son playing in the game and his inconvenience that evening was no greater than the other 3200+ drivers slowed by the checkpoint. And yet, he was the only one who felt he should attempt to exert his "authority" by jumping out of his car and confronting the officers on duty there at the time.

ARROGANT ABUSE OF AUTHORITY
In his fourth paragraph he states, "I decided to ask some difficult questions of the officers conducting this ill-advised check point. They are not used to citizens questioning their authority, which I think is a healthy thing to do." Just who does Jim Righeimer think he is, for goodness sake? That paragraph alone - and there are many more to come - demonstrates an almost unbelievable arrogance. Sure, if a resident is upset at an event like the checkpoint he can certainly make his views known through the proper channels - which does not include haranguing officers on duty. He can contact the Watch Commander or the Chief of Police and vent his spleen, but for him to interfere with officers performing their duties is well beyond any authority his warped little mind perceives himself to have. He's the Chairman of the Planning Commission, not the heir to a throne! He's lucky the police didn't slap cuffs on him for interfering with officers in the performance of their duty and throw him in the back of a police cruiser!

DEFLECTING BLAME
Then he says, "My concern for the public's safety has become a political toy for our police union." Horse manure! The police union representatives have every right to call him out when he interferes with operations in progress.

SMOKE SCREEN
Then Righeimer begins to blow the smoke. He tries to convince us that he's being persecuted by the Costa Mesa Police Unions because he's against their salaries and pensions. Clearly, this is an attempt to deflect attention to his transgressions that evening.

NO ACCIDENTS REPORTED
He tells us that he "received dozens of calls and emails from people who were tied up in the traffic jam. They witnessed near-collisions of automobiles." Well, according to the police logs for that evening, there were NO traffic collisions at that site during the checkpoint.


I KNOW DAVE SNOWDEN, AND...
He asks, "If former police chief Dave Snowden had pulled over to question a DUI checkpoint at rush hour next to the freeway, do you think we would be having this conversation?" Well, of course not! Chief Snowden is an outstanding law enforcement leader, held in high regard for his nearly 20 years of service in Costa Mesa who now holds the same job in Beverly Hills. He wouldn't charge up to officers doing their job and start yapping at them. Trust me, Mr. Righeimer, I know Dave Snowden and you're no Dave Snowden!

ANOTHER LIE...
Further on he asks, referring to Police Union President Allen Rieckhof, "Would Rieckhof have orchestrated a bunch of cops at last week's council meeting to speak out against me?" Yet another lie from Righeimer! Rieckhof spoke to the council about Righeimer's behavior and the Vice President of the Police Union, Dana Potts, delivered a very touching account of his painful, personal loss - of his fiance and their unborn daughter - to a speeding drunk driver two decades earlier. That's it - TWO police officers spoke on this issue, not "a bunch". Yes, there were around a hundred officers in the auditorium, but they were there, dressed again in white t-shirts, to show solidarity during the current budget negotiations. You can watch the streaming video of that meeting by clicking HERE, then selecting the City Council meeting of September 17th. Rieckhof's and Potts' comments come early in the "public comments" segment.

MEETING WITH ROEDER AND SHAWKEY
Righeimer then tells us that he has a meeting scheduled with the City Manager AllanRoeder and Police Chief Chris Shawkey Monday morning to "find a solution for when and where to place DUI checkpoints that are both safe and productive." Talk about nerve! What gives him the authority to demand such a meeting and, particularly, since the City Attorney is investigating his behavior at the checkpoint at this time? It seems to me that the City Manager and the Police Chief need to cancel that meeting until the full facts of the incident at the checkpoint are sorted out. Otherwise, it certainly looks like Righeimer is getting preferential treatment - something he obviously expects.

A TOWN HALL MEETING INSTEAD
It is a truly bad idea for Roeder and Shawkey to meet with Righeimer on this issue. Instead, based on the volume of comments on that particular DUI checkpoint that have been published in the local media, I suggest that a Town Hall meeting be held, open to all Costa Mesa residents who wish to express their views on the subject in general - to provide guidance to our elected and appointed leaders. Righeimer's voice is no more valuable in this discourse than yours and mine. Clearly, many of the other 3,200 people delayed in that particular checkpoint will have a view to present.

AUTHORITY NOT A BIRTHRIGHT
He goes on to tell us of his familial connections to law enforcement - as if that might somehow mitigate his behavior. Sorry, Mr. Righeimer, you have to earn the authority you seek - it is not some kind of Midwestern birthright.


OUTLANDISH ACCUSATION!
Then, after a couple paragraphs providing more smoke in the form of alleged pay and pension numbers, and considering that we're talking about a DUI checkpoint here, he begins another paragraph with this outlandishly ironic sentence: "Someone must have been drunk when they negotiated Costa Mesa's current pension deal." Now, that might be something he'd mutter to a crony while sucking suds at Gary Monahan's pub, but for a city official to make such an outlandish, demeaning published public statement only demonstrates the desperation he's feeling and the complete lack of common sense, maturity and responsibility one expects - no, demands - from a person in his position. Shame on you, Jim Righeimer.

MORE EQUINE EFFLUENT!
Before blowing more smoke about pensions costing after school programs he says the following: "Here is the bottom line. This is not about a DUI checkpoint. It's about the public employee benefits and overtime and out-of-control pensions." Again, horse manure! This issue IS about the DUI checkpoint. Righeimer is only trying to cover up his actions by changing the focus of the discussion.

RIGHEIMER'S RHETORIC ONLY COMPLICATES NEGOTIATIONS
I know we have problems with our current municipal budget. Negotiations continue - and a special city council meeting has been called for 5:30 Monday, September 27th, for a closed session discussion by the council on that very subject. The city is in a very deep hole again this year - we are more than $9 million short of balancing the budget. All the meat has been trimmed from our municipal skeleton and now we are forced to decide the painful question of which extremities must go - an arm, hand, foot, leg - to keep our city solvent. Righeimer's self-serving, dishonest and inflammatory rhetoric at this point in time only makes those negotiations more difficult.

RIGHEIMER IS UNWORTHY OF OUR TRUST
This whole "DUI" issue, and Righeimer's response to it, only drives home more clearly just why voters in this city and others, election after election, have found him unworthy of being elected to public office. Even though the candidate pool for the Costa Mesa City Council race is thin this time around, I will NOT vote for Jim Righeimer. I'd much rather take my chances with a smart, honest, dedicated, hard-working neophyte like Chris McEvoy than a self-serving, conniving, dishonest, carpetbagging political hack like Jim Righeimer, who feels somehow entitled to a seat at the big table because he's part of the Orange County Republican hierarchy, is Dana Rohrabacher's sidekick and was a supporter of Mayor Allan Mansoor. Nope, Righeimer's delusions of grandeur and his arrogant abuse of power are not for me, thanks.

WHAT, NO PHONY BADGE AND SIDE ARM?
I'm about half-surprised Mr. Righeimer didn't flash a bogus "Mike Carona sheriff's badge" and pull a gun on the police that night and demand they withdraw from the checkpoint. I know he used to have a concealed weapon carry permit at one time, plus was one of Carona's badge-carrying "favored few".

ME TO RIGHEIMER: GET OUTTA DODGE!
My suggestion to Mr. Righeimer is to take his lovely wife, beautiful daughters and warped visions of a political dynasty and haul his political gypsy caravan out of Costa Mesa. He needs to find a place where he thinks he can get away with public misbehavior, lying to the public and abuse of power and bulldoze his way to a seat of authority there.

Post-Thanksgiving Musings

I'M BAAACK!
Ten days ago I left you with my Thanksgiving message - a tome of sad memories recalled and encouragement to be thankful for your blessings. I hope your holiday found you close to family and friends and that you did, indeed, take a moment to contemplate those things and people for which you are grateful - I did. As you can tell from my photo, I did what many of you probably did - ate too much. URP! Excuse me!

Returning from a little holiday vacation I found that not too much had changed, although there were a few noteworthy events to think about.

BEVER BUFFOONERY ABOUNDS
For starters, our municipal court jester, Mayor Pro Tem Eric Bever, displayed both petulance and bad judgment in one clumsy move. He apparently was so angry at the result of the now notorious Lion's Park/Fairview Park Skate Park issue - both were turned down as possibilities - that his hissy fit continued for two weeks. He had an item placed on the agenda to revisit the Lion's Park issue, then for some unknown reason, had the item withdrawn. I'd like to think he thought again about it and used good judgment, but I doubt that's the case. More likely is that someone pointed out to him that his reasoning was flawed and that he would only look more ridiculous if he persisted. In a perfect bit if timing, Daily Pilot columnist Jim DeBoom presented his annual Turkey of the Year award and reminded us that Bever had been a recipient not too long ago. Just as leopards don't change their spots, apparently turkeys don't change their feathers either. I really am looking forward to next year's council race when Bever is expected to run for re-election.

COSTA MESA GOING VERTICAL
At that same council meeting a renovation of an existing hotel was given the go-ahead. This move, combined with other planned developments, means that before too long the north part of our city will soon look like an asparagus patch, with residential towers in excess of 20 stories popping up like that vegetable over night. If memory serves, there will now be nine new towers in that location. Yikes!

MANSOOR DEFENDS ICE USING FAULTY MEMORY
Then, as I read my accumulated Orange County Register newspapers I found that our young jailer/mayor, Allan Mansoor, had penned a pathetic response to an earlier editorial regarding ICE accomplishments. In his missive he blathers on and on, trying to justify the actions he took two years ago that fractured Costa Mesa. At one point he asks, "The Register also said that 'those here illegally will be reluctant to report crimes or cooperate with investigators in criminal investigations.' Where is the evidence to support this claim?" Well, he conveniently forgets that three of the last four chiefs of police in Costa Mesa advised the council on that subject and each concluded the same thing - that the bridges of communication between the CMPD and the Latino community would be severely damaged by his proposal and that victims of crimes would be reluctant to come forward fearing deportation. I don't recall any position the current chief, Chris Shawkey, has taken on this issue. Of course, Mansoor doesn't care - he consistently ignores the advice of his senior law enforcement officials. One might think that he, an underachiever in his career, has issues with those in authority.

SARA HARRIS - SPEED + BOOZE + DRUGS = CRASH & DEATH
Also during our absence the blood tests for Sara Harris were announced. You will recall that Harris crashed her Audi in Mesa Verde as she played games with her boyfriend, dodging in and out of traffic. It turns out that her blood alcohol level was nearly twice the legal limit and traces of marijuana were also found. As sad is this case is, with a young, vibrant woman killed through her own bad judgment, it could have been much, much worse. She and her irresponsible boyfriend could have taken others with them as they played games in heavy traffic on one our most crowded streets. There is nothing good in this situation, but perhaps her death can be used as a lesson for other young, careless drivers before they kill themselves and others.

MORE "DIRECTION" TO THE COUNCIL
And, finally, I returned to find a commentary in the Daily Pilot by a man who can be most generously described as an "influential activist" in Costa Mesa - a man about whom I've written much in the past, but nothing recently. He bemoaned the condition of several defunct businesses and/or homes throughout our city and demanded that the city council create an ordinance to prohibit such conditions. While I agree with him about the proliferation of such places - even a stopped clock is right twice a day - this is dangerous ground for the council. I urge them to use caution before they begin creating such draconian ordinances. The next thing you know they will be creating an ordinance to penalize your neighbor for not mowing his lawn every week.

MOVING FORWARD
So, off we go toward Christmas and then a new year.