Hews Media Group-Community Newspaper has exclusively learned that the Fair Political Practices Commission has opened an investigation into embattled Central Basin Municipal Water District Director Leticia Vasquez and her illegal Central Basin Board vote to approve waiving the attorney-client privilege in the Qui Tam “Whistleblower” lawsuit against the Board.
Ms. Vasquez is a “party plaintiff” in the whistleblower case.
See court documents (look on pages 20,21) click here.
Central Basin sources told us that the FPPC and investigators are looking into whether Ms. Vasquez actually lived in her district when she ran for the seat in 2012.
A letter from an investigator from the FPPC obtained by our newspaper asked for several items related to the whistleblower case.
The investigator requested the “Agenda packet, agenda and minutes for the Oct, 9, 2004 meeting concerning the Qui Tam case, bc518653.”
He also requested “the date of the board vote to waive attorney-client privilege regarding the Qui Tam case.”
Two other items that the investigator asked for, seemingly unrelated to the Qui Tam case but items that point to a residency investigation, were “the date Vasquez was elected to the board and the date Vasquez took office.”
Sources inside Central Basin confirmed to us that the FPPC asked for documentation signed by Ms. Vasquez attesting to her residency in Lynwood.
Illegal Vote Investigation
Last October, we exclusively obtained a legal opinion written by Paul Chan of the Los Angeles law firm of Bird-Marella, slamming Central Basin Director Ms. Vasquez’s Oct. 9 vote to waive attorney-client privilege so the whistleblower lawsuit filed in 2013 can go forward.
Mr. Chan was hired as legal counsel for Buchalter-Nemer, one of the defendants named in the whistleblower lawsuit.
Among other things, the opinion clearly warned Ms. Vasquez that she was financially conflicted, and should she or any of the “legacy” Board members (Bob Apodaca, Phil Hawkins or Art Chacon) take a vote to waive privilege, they would be liable.
Mr. Chan said in the opinion, “We write to advise you that if the current board votes to waive the attorney-client privilege it is our view that such a waiver would be ineffective and that Leticia Vasquez’s participation in such a vote would violate California law.”
Mr. Chan went on to say, “Miss Vasquez has a direct personal and financial interest in advocating and voting for the district to waive its attorney-client privilege and is in violation of California Government Code 87100 which states, “no public official at any level of state or local government shall make, participate in making, or in any way attempt to use her official position to influence a governmental decision in which she knows or has reason to know she has a financial interest.”
Ms. Vasquez, Mr. Roybal, and Mr. Apodaca voted to waive the privilege despite the warning, with Directors Chacon and Hawkins walking out of the board room in protest.
Ms. Vasquez stands to make over $2 million if successful in her lawsuit, filed against the very agency she was elected to serve two years ago.
According to a recent Central Basin audit, the lawsuit has cost the agency over $270,000 in fees as of last June.
Residency Investigation
The other items requested by the FPPC, the date she was elected and the date she took office, point to a residency investigation, confirmed by sources inside the Central Basin.
Since early 2013, we have published several articles on Central Basin about Ms. Vasquez and two other board members, Merssrs. Apodaca and James Roybal.
Posting the stories in print and online garnered major attention in Ms. Vasquez’s district, especially in the city of Lynwood where she resides.
Several residents who said they lived very near Ms. Vasquez told us via email, phone, and posting comments on loscerritosnews.net that they rarely saw her at her house in Lynwood.
“She would only come by the house about once a week,” a source that wanted anonymity said in an email sent to us, “her family members live there, she does not, you need to investigate this.”
Some accused Ms. Vasquez of living with her boyfriend, now husband, attorney Ron Wilson who lives in Central Los Angeles.
Ms. Vasquez has been a lightning rod since she was elected as a Central Basin Director in 2012.
Joining Directors Roybal and Apodaca, she formed a new majority and fired COO Chuck Fuentes and Asst. General Manager Ron Bielke for no reason, both of whom were looking into the now infamous $2.5 million “slush fund” and contracts given to Pasadena based Pacifica Services.
In February 2013, we exclusively reported that Ms. Vasquez, who campaigned on ridding the troubled water district of corruption, received extremely heavy financial support from two individuals with substantial criminal backgrounds, Angel Gonzales and Rick Mayer.
Mr. Gonzales, who pleaded down from a felony to a misdemeanor, was convicted on political corruption charges and Mayer is a convicted felon.
Ms. Vasquez declared paying her political campaign manager Mr. Gonzalez $4,000 before the actual June 5, 2012 election and owing him another $18,399.
Documents also showed that some of the $31,146 she amassed came from the same special interest groups that she vigorously campaigned to root out.
Tom and Ron Calderon gave $2,250 while Ms. Vasquez’s own mailer criticized Tom Calderon for being paid consultant for the Central Basin Metropolitan Water District.
Pay-to-Play
After the election with her new-found majority Ms. Vasquez was caught handing out sole-source contracts to benefit longtime personal associates including Maurice Chenier, the law office partner of her husband RMr. Wilson, and another close personal associate, Jasmyne Cannick.
Mr. Chenier was hired as a special attorney and Ms. Cannick as a media consultant by the Central Basin in early 2013, raising ire from Directors Chacon and Hawkins.
Mr. Chacon suspected that the two were awarded the lucrative work because of their close ties to Ms. Vasquez, telling us in a series of interviews, “the District apparently has added yet another lawyer and for some unknown reason some sort of media relations specialist, whatever that means.”
Mr. Hews may be contacted at loscerritosnews.net
