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ERIC PREVEN’S NOTEBOOK - Coming Tuesday to a crooked council near you is a robust top-off for the Jennesse Center, the only service provider with established confidentiality protocol in partnership with appropriate hotels and the highly specialized trained staff to work with IPV survivors. [Intimate Partner Violence].
Smart Speaker: How much?
Unclear, but more than $520,280 a year.
Smart Speaker: Where is this?
Unfortunately, the established confidentiality protocol provides for a non response.
Smart Speaker: GFY.
TGIF:
After a stirring performance by the Lion's Academy of Irish Dance and a flurry of attacks about the hypocrisy of the way the city juices, Women’s History Month... it was time to party.
Marqueece Harris-Dawson, CD8: We have a few members in the queue who would like to speak while you all are taking photographs. We'll begin with Councilmember Lee. Folks, please, Mr. Lee, folks, please stop disrupting the meeting. We're keeping track of who's having outbursts. We will remove you from this meeting if it continues.
Jonathan Groat, Deputy City Attorney: That's your second warning, Ms. Bollinger.
Marqueece Harris-Dawson, CD8: You're out. Ms. Bollinger, you have been warned multiple times and now you've been instructed to remove this, to exit this meeting pursuant to Rule 12.
Jonathan Groat, Deputy City Attorney: Ms. Bollinger is standing on the chair and will not stop yelling. She's been removed from the meeting and continues to disrupt the meeting.
Marqueece Harris-Dawson, CD8: We'll ask the sergeants to remove Ms. Bollinger from the meeting.
Jonathan Groat, Deputy City Attorney: Ms. Bollinger continues to disrupt the meeting, shouting, and standing on the chairs. We'll continue to ask her to leave quietly.
Marqueece Harris-Dawson, CD8: All right. Mr. Lee.
Staffer B John Lee, CD12: Thank you, Councilmember Park, for having these incredible women in here today. I've had the opportunity.
Marqueece Harris-Dawson, CD8: Gentlemen who just stood up in the black hoodie, you are instructed not to disrupt this meeting. This is your first and only warning. Mr. Lee.
Staffer B John Lee, CD12: I've had the opportunity to work with many of these women in the past and support different causes that they've been a part of. Thank you for highlighting their stories and this council, I'm hopeful that we will always stand together to stand against any type of violence against women around the world, especially here in the city of Los Angeles.
Smart Speaker: No word if the causes Staffer B supports... include the $75,000 paid out by the City over his objections to settle with a former Los Angeles City Council aide who alleged in a lawsuit that her supervisor, John Lee, had quizzed her about her sex life, told her “I know you want me,” and refused to consider her for another job because she was a “petite pretty girl.” Lee, who worked for Councilman Mitchell Englander, denied those claims. Englander called them “patently false.”
On Friday, Mr. Lee continued, "We say it over and over, our diversity is our strength here in the city of Los Angeles, and I just appreciate you being here and bringing these women in today to show the impact of their stories and to make sure that everyone hears what they had to say. Thank you, Ms. Park.”
Smart Speaker: What about that case, as I wrote to the LA Times about a civilian psychologist Kristen Wheldon, who was working at LAFD? Her lawsuit settled for $5,750,000 without so much as a word, during Women's history month.
Kristen Wheldon now runs her own firm as a psychologist with a variety of expertise, including kids who start fires.
When she blew some kind of whistle (2017) and alleged retaliation (2019) she brought in an attorney to assist.
Alyssa Kim Schabloski, a UCLA graduate is a Trial lawyer for people in discrimination, harassment, and retaliation employment civil rights, catastrophic personal injury, and Constitutional civil rights.
She may be at Gladius law, currently. She is the one who presented, "Who Says You Can’t Fight City Hall? Proven Trial Techniques in Public Employee Cases: Motions in Limine and Jury Instructions,” and “Sexual Harassment in the Law Enforcement Workplace,” appeared in The Daily Journal (November 12, 2014).
$5,750,000 in Taxpayer Funds to be paid out. Nothing to report?
It was upsetting, but not too upsetting for Nithya Raman to take a brisk bike ride along a surprisingly wide part of Ventura Blvd, in the West valley this weekend. This location is a no brainer for a bike lane but infuriated some because it does not reflect what we are really up against in the current program to prioritize cyclists ahead of ... everyone else.
Raman's comments on item 48, the Ventura Specific Plan, and concomitant Plan Review Board touch on the tainted redistricting process.
Item 48 Raman City Council 03 15 24 1
Smart Speaker: Yes thank you it's Eric Preven I'd like to give a general public comment and note that I was omitted during the agenda items. Hello?
Jonathan Groat, City Attorney: Yes go ahead.
Smart Speaker: How much time do I have? How much time do I have?
Jonathan Groat, City Attorney: We just restarted your time. You have one minute.
Smart Speaker: You're not very chatty today Groat, are you denying comment on the items?
Jonathan Groat, City Attorney: Yes you have one minute for general public comment and it is going on right now.
Smart Speaker: Okay well this morning you had a little ad hoc special or Ms. Padilaa held a special little meeting of her committee. Heather Hutt overslept but Eunisses was there; there were no public speakers at all.
There were two items related to the 160 million dollar Olympic howdy do for the kids, which seems to be completely or maybe slightly off plan. They have more kids, they say about 130,000 happy to have their $10 admission comped by Mr. Wasserman and LA2028. Does it seem like a way for the City Recs and Parks to lock arms with the kids, and funnel in the $160 million? Sneaky, but also disgusting, thank you. All, while the council had sent a stately delegation over to Europe and Japan.
Traci Park, who, in taking on some Olympic responsibilities, will scupper any chance of her running against Bass for Mayor, because she will be pre-tainted with the stench of the Olympics fiasco; it's a charming blend of grotesque inequality and first amendment zones. In Japan, Park broadcast live on Instagram from a bullet rain going 170 mph.
Back in LA, in Padilla's dreary little committee meeting, there was a motion from Staffer B John Lee to ensure that Paul Krekorian's staff as well as other city staff would be entitled to upgrade their Priuses to Pick up trucks! Not a joke, very important for retention of city staff who enjoy Beyoncé’s Texas Hold ‘em as much as Janice Hahn and the county dancers!
Beyoncé - TEXAS HOLD 'EM (Official Lyric Video)
Smart Speaker: I stand with many of the speakers today who were offended by the women's month celebration from this body who is behaving in such a sneaky manner, literally covering up so many things including the $5.750,000 million to settle --
AT&T blight. The company is trying to dump land lines in California.
Jonathan Groat, Deputy City Attorney: Mr. Preven, your time is expired.
(Eric Preven is a longtime community activist and is a contributor to CityWatch. The opinions are of Mr. Preven and not necessarily those of CityWatchLA.com.)
