The defense rested on Monday in a seven-month corruption trial after only half a day, opting to call no witnesses and close their case before lunch on the same day they opened it after reading a few stipulated facts from earlier testimony.

Andy Serbe, Staff Writer
Daily Journal
andy_serbe@dailyjournal.com

PDF Format: 2017 0718 Daily Journal

July 18, 2017

The defense called no witnesses as it rested its case Monday in a seven-month San Bernardino County corruption trial, opting to read to the jury a few stipulated facts from earlier testimony and close before lunch.

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From left, developer Jeff Burum, Mark Kirk, former chief of staff to Supervisor Gary Ovitt. former assistant assessor Jim Erwin and former supervisor Paul Biane appear in San Bernardino County Superior Court in Colonies bribery case. File photo. (David Bauman/The Press-Enterprise)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 07/17/17 – 12:02 PM PDT |

Defense attorneys in the San Bernardino County Colonies bribery case rested Monday after about one hour of presentation, setting the stage for final arguments in mid-August.

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From left, developer Jeff Burum, Mark Kirk, former chief of staff to Supervisor Gary Ovitt, former assistant assessor Jim Erwin and former supervisor Paul Biane appear in San Bernardino County Superior Court in this file photo during the Colonies corruption trial.

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 07/15/17 – 4:29 PM PDT |

Called “the biggest public corruption case in San Bernardino County history” when it was filed in 2010, the marathon Colonies case nears an end after seven months of trial, with defense attorneys saying bribery wasn’t proven while prosecutors say nothing can erase years of dirty dealing.

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“Ted Viera’s” LinkedIn profile. “Viera” is the maiden name of former Hesperia mayor Tad Honeycutt’s mother. In September 2007, Honeycutt and C. Steven Cox, the founder of California Charter Academies, were indicted on 117 felony charges related to $5.5 million in taxpayer funds the pair allegedly mishandled. Five years later, Honeycutt went back into the education business, using the name “Ted Viera.” The Viera LinkedIn page was shut down Friday afternoon. (Screenshot)

By Beau Yarbrough, The Sun
Posted: 06/09/17 – 5:48 PM PDT |

RANCHO CUCAMONGA >> Five years after he was indicted on 34 charges related to the failure of the largest chain of charter schools in California and facing up to 20 years in prison, former Hesperia mayor Tad Honeycutt went back into the education business.

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Colonies defendants and their attorneys gather outside of a courtroom in San Bernardino Superior Court during a recess in the Colonies corruption trial. File photo. (Photo by Rick Sforza/The Sun)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 06/08/17 – 5:05 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> A prosecutor in the San Bernardino County Colonies bribery case on Thursday attempted to recoup the credibility of key witness Adam Aleman after days of defense attorney battering of the former assistant assessor’s accounts of alleged corruption a decade ago.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 06/07/17 – 3:08 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> The dismissal of an alternate juror in the Colonies bribery trial on Wednesday did not hinder testimony, in which defense attorneys continued drilling key witness Adam Aleman on his honesty and credibility.

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Attorneys Stephen Larson, middle, and Jennifer Keller, left, discuss their case with defendant Jeff Burum, one of four defendants currently on trial in the Colonies corruption case in San Bernardino. File photo.(Stan Lim, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 06/01/17 – 3:45 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> Defense attorneys in the Colonies bribery trial on Thursday attacked the credibility and character of key witness and former San Bernardino County Assistant Assessor Adam Aleman, claiming he was shaping his statements to conform to the prosecution narrative of the case and “making things up as he went along.”

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 05/31/17 – 9:10 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> A defense attorney on Wednesday continued challenging the credibility of former San Bernardino County Assistant Assessor Adam Aleman on claims he heard and saw details that pointed to bribery in settling a $102 million lawsuit between the county and developer Colonies Partners in 2006.

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Colonies trial defendants and their attorneys gather outside of a courtroom in San Bernardino Superior Court. File photo. (Photo by Rick Sforza/The Sun)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 05/30/17 – 7:17 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> A defense attorney in the Colonies corruption trial on Tuesday grilled former San Bernardino County Assistant Assessor Adam Aleman on his repeated lies to district attorney investigators and a civil grand jury investigating allegations of malfeasance at the Assessor’s Office in 2008.

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By Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 05/22/17 – 5:41 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> Former San Bernardino County Assistant Assessor Adam Aleman told jurors Monday in the Colonies bribery trial that, like his former boss Bill Postmus, he was testifying under a plea agreement with prosecutors.

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Attorneys Stephen Larson, middle, and Jennifer Keller, left, discuss their case with defendant Jeff Burum, one of four defendants currently on trial in the San Bernardino County’s Colonies corruption case. (File)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 05/16/17 – 1:55 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> Former San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Postmus testified Tuesday in the Colonies corruption trial that he never thought a $102 million settlement favorable to a Rancho Cucamonga developer 11 years ago would result in kickback money to him — a statement that goes to the heart of the six-year-old case.

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Colonies defendants and their attorneys gather outside of a courtroom during a recess in San Bernardino Superior Court. File photo. (Photo by Rick Sforza/The Sun)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 05/11/17 – 9:02 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> A prosecutor in the Colonies corruption case on Thursday walked former county Supervisor Bill Postmus through his 2011 statements that helped bring charges in the bribery trial, but Postmus appeared to be putting distance between himself and what he told authorities six years ago.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 05/11/17 – 10:27 AM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> The judge in the Colonies corruption trial on Thursday dismissed two felony charges against former San Bernardino County Assistant Assessor Jim Erwin after an appellate court determined that the offenses could only be charged as misdemeanors.

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Rancho Cucamonga-based developer Jeff Burum, left, speaks with his attorney Stephen Larson in the hallway at the San Bernardino Superior Court during a recess of the Colonies corruption case. File photo. (Micah Escamilla/San Bernardino Sun)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 05/10/17 – 7:43 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> Colonies trial defendant Jim Erwin, depicted by prosecutors as scheming against former San Bernardino County Supervisor and Assessor Bill Postmus more than a decade ago, actually stood beside the beleaguered politician with “tough love” as Postmus struggled with his drug addiction, Postmus agreed in testimony Wednesday.

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Attorneys Stephen Larson, middle, and Jennifer Keller, left, discuss their case with defendant Jeff Burum, one of four defendants currently on trial in San Bernardino County’s Colonies corruption trial. (File Photo)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
and Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 05/09/17 – 3:48 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> While Bill Postmus was being interviewed and turned into a prosecution witness in the Colonies corruption case in 2011, San Bernardino County District Attorney investigators never tested or monitored him for drugs, despite his well-documented use of methamphetamine, Postmus testified Tuesday.

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Developer Jeff Burum, left, speaks with his attorney Stephen Larson in a hallway at the San Bernardino Superior Court. File photo. (Micah Escamilla/San Bernardino Sun)

By Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 04/06/17 – 2:06 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> A veteran San Bernardino County attorney who had opposed the $102 million settlement with Colonies Partners LP in 2006 told a defense attorney Thursday in court that he had changed his mind by 2009 and thought it was “objectively reasonable.”

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Three San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies, from the left, Nicholas Downey, Charles Foster and Michael Phelps, were charged in the April 9, 2015 beating of Apple Valley resident Francis Jared Pusok following a nearly three-hour pursuit in the High Desert. (File Photos by Micah Escamilla – Staff Photographer)

By Doug Saunders, The Sun
and Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 04/03/17 – 3:38 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> Two former San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies accused in the beating of an Apple Valley man that was captured on live television each pleaded no contest Monday to a misdemeanor count of disturbing the peace as part of a plea deal.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 03/30/17 – 4:32 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> One of three former San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies accused of assaulting an Apple Valley man following a chase through the High Desert two years ago was found guilty Thursday in Superior Court, while a mistrial was declared for the other two defendants.

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Three San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies, from the left, Nicholas Downey, Charles Foster and Michael Phelps, have been charged in the April 9, 2015 beating of Apple Valley resident Francis Jared Pusok following a nearly three-hour pursuit in the High Desert. (Micah Escamilla – Staff Photographer)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 03/28/17 – 6:05 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> Closing arguments concluded and the jury began deliberating Tuesday in the trial of three San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies charged with assaulting an Apple Valley man after a lengthy pursuit in the High Desert nearly two years ago.

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By Louis Casiano Jr. / Staff Writer
March 17, 2017

SANTA ANA – A private detective who admitted he tried to set up a Costa Mesa councilman for a false DUI and tailed the city’s former mayor using a tracking device was sentenced by an Orange County Superior Court judge Friday to one year in jail.

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Attorney Michael Schwartz, left, joins San Bernardino County Sheriff Deputies Michael Phelps, 29, Nicholas Downey, 33, and Charles Foster, 34, all three of whom have been charged with felony assault by a public officer against Francis Jared Pusok, stand in court during an arraignment September 8, 2015 at San Bernardino Superior Court. (File)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 03/02/17 – 10:19 PM PST |

SAN BERNARDINO >> Three San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies were looking to get some “cheap shots” when they allegedly assaulted an Apple Valley man following a nearly three-hour chase, a prosecutor said during his opening statement Thursday at the deputies’ trial.

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Maya Lau
February 20, 2017

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has collected the names of about 300 deputies who have a history of past misconduct — such as domestic violence, theft, bribery and brutality — that could damage their credibility if they testify in court.

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Paloma Esquivel
January 14, 2017

Ten Southern California journalists are fighting an effort by prosecutors to compel them to testify in the San Bernardino County corruption trials of a developer, a former supervisor and other former county officials.

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Wednesday, January 4, 2017 – 07:00 p.m.

Funeral Services have been set for San Bernardino County Superior Court Judge Brian Saunders, who passed away unexpectedly last week.

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Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens speaks in August. (Sam Gangwer/Staff Photographer)

By Kelly Puente and Tony Saavedra / Staff Writers
Published:  Dec. 16, 2016
Updated:     Dec. 17, 2016 – 8:57 a.m.

A judge said Friday that he might find Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens in contempt of court because of her department’s reaction to an order to produce documents in the trial of admitted killer Scott Dekraai.

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Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals, shown in October, is hearing the challenge in the Cole Wilkins case. Goethals is also the judge in the Scott Dekraai mass murder case. (Ken Steinhardt/File Photo)

By Tony Saavedra / Staff Writer
Published: Dec. 3, 2016
Updated:   Dec. 4, 2016 – 8:49 p.m.

The Orange County District Attorney’s Office, harshly criticized in a recent appellate court ruling for a systemic failure to protect defendants’ rights and under investigation by the state attorney general and the county grand jury, is facing a new legal challenge that could remove it from a second high-profile murder case in less than two years.

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Bill Holland

By Shea Johnson, Staff Writer
Posted:     Nov 12, 2016 at 12:08 AM
Updated:  Nov 12, 2016 at 3:55 PM

HESPERIA — As a school district police officer here, Mayor Bill Holland fell under his boss’ scrutiny for purportedly destroying evidence while leading the investigation into claims that an Oak Hills High School freshman football player had been subjected to sexual hazing, the Daily Press has learned.

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By Stephanie K. Baer, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Posted: 10/20/16 – 9:35 AM PDT |

WEST COVINA >> Councilman Mike Spence pleaded not guilty to driving under the influence of a drug Thursday morning.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 10/12/16 – 2:36 AM PDT |

San Bernardino County Superior Court Executive Officer Christina Volkers has resigned, effective Dec. 31, the court announced Tuesday.

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By Shea Johnson, Staff Writer
Posted:    Oct 11, 2016 at 5:41 PM
Updated: Oct 11, 2016 at 6:30 PM

SAN BERNARDINO — A jury sided with the county Tuesday in the whistleblower lawsuit brought by three current or former deputies alleging retaliation for disclosing purported ticket quota and impound schemes within two High Desert sheriff’s stations, court records show.

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Friday, October 7, 2016 – 09:15 a.m.

A nearly month-long trial involving alleged workplace retaliation against three current and former San Bernardino County Sheriff’s deputies has been finally handed to a jury.

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By Beau Yarbrough, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Posted: 09/30/16, 3:11 PM PDT |

RANCHO CUCAMONGA >> September 2007 was a long time ago.

That month, Rihanna, Fergie and Jay-Z won big at the 24th MTV Video Music Awards. “The Sopranos,” “30 Rock,” James Spader and Sally Field won at the 59th Emmy Awards. Roger Federer beat Novak Djokovic at the 127th Men’s US Open.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 09/30/16 – 3:20 PM PDT |

Prosecutors in San Bernardino County’s Colonies public corruption case were ordered Friday by a Superior Court judge to return some documents and personal items seized by the FBI during a 2011 raid at one of the defendants’ home and business.

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Charles “Chase’ Merritt (File photo)

By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 09/23/16 – 4:08 PM PDT |

The attorney for McStay family murder suspect Charles “Chase” Merritt told a San Bernardino Superior Court judge Friday he cannot begin trial until he finishes defending another client in a public corruption case, scheduled to begin Oct. 17 and last seven months.

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Thursday, September 22, 2016 – 08:45 a.m.

Yes. It was bound to happen.

Los Angeles-Based KNBC-TV has picked up coverage of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department ticket quota whistle-blower lawsuit.

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By Brian Rokos, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 09/20/16 – 6:55 PM PDT |

The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department is not commenting on a photo shown in court as part of an ongoing civil trial that a plaintiff says shows a deputy dressed in a Grinch costume intentionally and illegally driving a patrol car through a stoplight in Victorville to prompt a red-light camera to snap a souvenir picture.

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By Beatriz Valenzuela, San Bernardino Sun
Posted: 09/19/16 – 6:35 PM PDT | U

SAN BERNARDINO >> A San Bernardino County sheriff’s lieutenant testified during a civil whistleblower-retaliation trial Monday he tried to quash a “petty citations war” between two High Desert sheriff’s stations.

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By Kristina Hernandez, Redlands Daily Facts
Posted: 09/16/16 – 7:34 PM PDT |

HIGHLAND >> Three public interest groups on Thursday filed a lawsuit against the city of Highland over its approval of the controversial Harmony housing project.

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By Brian Rokos, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 09/14/16 – 10:15 PM PDT |

A San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputy testified Wednesday that he was removed from a prestigious motorcycle traffic-enforcement assignment after he criticized what he characterized as a supervisor’s illegal traffic-ticket quota and continued to cite Victorville elected officials, city officials and off-duty deputies over that same supervisor’s objections.

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Tuesday, September 13, 2016 – 09:00 a.m.

The long-awaited trial involving a traffic ticket quota system employed by the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department is now underway.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 09/09/16 – 12:25 PM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> Prosecutors and defense attorneys in San Bernardino County’s biggest public corruption case announced Friday that after years of legal wrangling, they are ready to begin trial.

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By Brian Rokos / Staff Writer
Published: Aug. 24, 2016
Updated: Aug. 25, 2016 6:24 a.m.

• He failed to appear in court when subpoenaed by an attorney challenging a wiretap he approved. He says he believed the court date would be changed.

A warrant was issued for the arrest of former Riverside County District Attorney Paul Zellerbach after he did not show up in court Tuesday, Aug. 23, to testify about the approval of a wiretap that prompted authorities to charge a man with possessing illegal drugs.

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Howard Blume and Joy Resmovits
August 23, 2016

Monday was the end of the line for a landmark California case challenging tenure and other traditional job protections for teachers — and the teachers won.

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The seven defendants in the Beaumont political corruption case, in the front row are Francis Dennis Coe Jr., Joseph Sandy Aklufi, William Kevin Aylward, Ernest Alois Egger, Deepak Moorjani, David Willliam Dillon, and Alan Charles Kapanicas, left to right, in the back row are attorneys Melissa Meister, James Taylor and Virginia Blumenthal, left to right, prior court proceedings in Dept. 52 of Riverside Superior Court on Friday. (Kurt Miller – Staff Photographer)

By David Danelski and and Gail Wesson, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 08/19/16 – 11:20 PM PDT |

The seven former Beaumont city officials charged in May with 94 felony corruption counts, including embezzlement and misappropriation of public funds, each pleaded not guilty to all charges against them Friday.

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Foes tried to stop the developer and city from using initiatives to legally protect the project.

By Imran Ghori / Staff Writer
Published: Aug. 18, 2016 – Updated: 8:55 p.m.

A judge has denied a request by opponents of the World Logistics Center to block two initiatives aimed at shielding the 40.6 million-square-foot warehouse complex from legal challenges.

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Judge Thomas M. Goethals during a 2014 case. (Ken Steinhardt / Staff Photographer)

By Sean Emery / Staff Writer
Aug. 17, 2016 – Updated 10:08 p.m.

SANTA ANA – An Orange County judge offered to remove himself from a murder trial Wednesday, only to learn that attorneys on both sides want him to stay on a case that involves allegations of prosecutors falsifying evidence.

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Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals has cracked down on misuse of jailhouse informants. He threw a curve Monday to lawyers seeking removal of the District Attorney’s Office from a murder case following allegations of falsifying and withholding evidence. As he postponed the hearing until Wednesday, Goethals urged attorneys on both sides to consider an argument as to why he should or shouldn’t be removed from the case. (Joshua Sudock / File)

By Tony Saavedra / Staff Writer
Aug. 15, 2016
Updated Aug. 16, 2016 – 7:25 a.m.

Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals threw a curve Monday to lawyers seeking removal of the District Attorney’s Office from a murder case following allegations of falsifying and withholding evidence.

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By Cassie MacDuff, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 08/14/16 – 2:11 PM PDT |

Baffling. That’s all that can be said about the state Senate Appropriations Committee killing a bill last week that would have addressed a critical shortage of judges in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

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The USC Trojans take the field for a 2014 game against Notre Dame at the Coliseum. (Mark J. Terrill / AP Photo)

Paul Pringle and Rong-Gong Lin II
August 6, 2016

The alleged bribes and kickbacks that prosecutors said flowed like honey between government officials at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and people who did business at the venerable stadium exceeded $2 million — cash that belonged to the taxpayers.

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Rong-Gong Lin II, Paul Pringle and Marisa Gerber
August 4, 2016

Two concert promoters accused in a bribery-and-embezzlement scheme involving raves at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum will avoid serving any jail time under a plea bargain with prosecutors who acknowledged, for the second time, that they mishandled evidence in the high-profile corruption case.

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In narrative rejected by county, whistleblower complaint alleges corruption, retaliation

By Shea Johnson, Staff Writer
Posted Aug. 1, 2016 at 3:15 PM
Updated Aug 1, 2016 at 5:44 PM

Three current or former deputies who say they were rebuked for disclosing an alleged impound and ticket quota scheme entrenched within two High Desert sheriff’s stations will have their days in court.

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Wednesday, July 27, 2016 – 10:00 a.m.

A civil lawsuit filed by current and former deputies from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department will advance to trial.

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By Tony Saavedras, Staff Writer
July 22, 2016

The American Civil Liberties Union sent volunteer watchers into local courtrooms Friday, a move aimed at bringing attention to what the civil rights group describes as routine cheating by prosecutors in Orange County.

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By Jim Steinberg, The Sun
Posted: 07/20/16 – 12:16 AM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> The sewage treatment plant proposed by the Highland-based East Valley Water District will cost at least $150 million more to build that has been planned, San Bernardino Municipal Water Department officials say.

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The focus of the legal challenges, for now, is on three initiatives that the City Council adopted.

By Imran Ghori / Staff WRiter
Published:  June 17, 2016
Updated:    June 18, 2016 – 6:30 a.m.

A legal battle over the World Logistics Center will continue through at least the summer as opponents and Moreno Valley square off over whether the city violated state law in approving three developer-backed initiatives.

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Governor wants to shift positions; Legislature wants more spots. Either way, Inland Empire loses.

By Jeff Horseman / Staff Writer
Published: June 13, 2016
Updated:   June 14, 2016 – 9:12 a.m.

The Inland region’s chronic shortage of judges is now caught in a political tug-of-war between a plan favored by Gov. Jerry Brown and another favored by Democratic lawmakers.

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Associated Press
Posted:     06/11/2016 – 11:47:28 PM PDT
Updated: 06/11/2016 – 11:48:01 PM PDT

SANTA ANA — Authorities in Orange County have acknowledged an extensive log detailing the handling of jailhouse informants was kept by sheriff’s deputies but never released despite court hearings last year over the use of snitches in the high-profile case of a mass killer.

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Tony Saavedra / Staff Writer
June 9, 2016 – Updated 10:49 p.m.

Secret notes kept by Orange County sheriff’s deputies on jailhouse informants appear to contradict testimony given by deputies during legal hearings for confessed Seal Beach mass murderer Scott Dekraai, prosecutors said late Thursday.

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Posted by Katy Grimes
June 01, 2016 – 06:43 am

A legal tale of drama rivaling the magnitude of the infamous 2006 Duke Lacrosse rape case, has been dragging on in California courts for more than seven years. But the case could now be tossed out, on charges that prosecutors with the State Attorney General’s office destroyed the evidence they had been withholding from an indicting Grand Jury.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 06/03/16 – 9:17 PM PDT |

Officials with the labor union representing San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies said Friday that prison realignment and a shortage of deputies has prompted a safety campaign that has delayed the transport of inmates to court.

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California Attorney General Kamala Harris is talking a lot these days in her bid to become a U.S. senator, but one subject she’s not mentioning is her complex role in Orange County’s highest-profile criminal case – the penalty phase in the trial of confessed mass murderer Scott Dekraai. (Cindy Yamanaka – File)

By Tony Saavedra / Staff Writer
June 1, 2016 – Updated 10:10 p.m.

California Attorney General Kamala Harris is talking a lot these days in her bid to become a U.S. senator, but one subject she’s not mentioning is her complex role in Orange County’s highest-profile criminal case – the penalty phase in the trial of confessed mass murderer Scott Dekraai.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 05/27/16 – 11:28 AM PDT |

SAN BERNARDINO >> A defense attorney’s bid to get the San Bernardino County’s Colonies corruption case dismissed was rescheduled Friday until July 15.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 05/26/16 – 3:29 PM PDT |

Another motion seeking dismissal of San Bernardino County’s Colonies public corruption case will be heard Friday in San Bernardino Superior Court, this time on grounds prosecutors with the state Attorney General’s Office did not save e-mails a defense attorney maintains were evidence.

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Thursday, May 26, 2016 – 02:00 p.m.

Will the third time be the charm for Robb Quincey?

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By Richard K. De Atley, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 05/20/16 – 9:02 PM PDT |

With $122.5 million in possible fines and restitution in the Beaumont corruption case, prosecutors are trying to secure the homes and bank accounts of some defendants — former top city officials charged with embezzlement and misappropriation of funds.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 05/19/16 – 5:07 PM PDT |

To read filing, click the following link:

Motion to Dismiss – Destruction of Evidence by Attorney General

A defense attorney in San Bernardino County’s Colonies corruption case has filed a motion in Superior Court seeking dismissal of the case on grounds that prosecutors destroyed evidence.

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Published: May 18, 2016
Updated: May 19, 2016 6:46 a.m.

On Tuesday, May 17, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office charged seven former officials with the city of Beaumont with 94 felonies and misappropriation of $43 million in taxpayer funds.

Public records show how Beaumont city officials tapped into millions in bond money.

To read Staff Reports in The Press-Enterprise, click here.

By Tony Saavedra / Staff Writer
Published: May 9, 2016
Updated:   May 10, 2016 7:39 a.m.

Convicted double murderer Henry Rodriguez was released on bail Monday after 18 years in prison, another felony case upended because of questions related to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office’s use of jailhouse informants.

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Three inmates escaped from the Orange County Central Men’s Jail on January 22, 2016. The facility was built in 1968. Erika Aguilar/KPCC

Erika Aguilar
May 05, 2016 – 09:36 PM

Orange County sheriff’s officials have assigned an investigative sergeant to monitor how and if jailhouse informants will be used with the Sheriff’s consultation after deputies failed to disclose records to the court on the department’s inmate informant program.

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Luke Money
April 29, 2016

Two private investigators can be tried on charges of false imprisonment and conspiracy in connection with a fake DUI report against a Costa Mesa city councilman in 2012, an Orange County judge ruled Friday.

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By Brian Rokos, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 04/26/16 – 12:25 AM PDT |

A Phelan man was arrested Monday nine months after authorities say he drove off with a U.S. Forest Service investigator hanging from the car window at a wildfire base camp in Victorville.

The investigator fired shots at the man but missed.

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Legal filing says town has illegally transferred funds, among other claims

By Matthew Cabe
Staff Writer
Follow @@DP_MatthewCabe
Posted Apr. 21, 2016 at 12:16 PM

APPLE VALLEY — A lawsuit filed in the Superior Court of San Bernardino alleges Proposition 218 violations related to Apple Valley’s Wastewater Division, which provides sewer service to more than 22,000 town residents.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 04/18/16 – 2:44 PM PDT |

A former Los Angeles County social worker recently charged in connection with the death of 8-year-old Gabriel Fernandez has been working on child custody cases in San Bernardino County for more than two years, a court spokesman said Monday.

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By Joe Nelson, The Sun
Posted: 04/18/16 – 2:29 PM PDT |

Christina M. Volkers, court executive officer for San Bernardino County Superior Court, has been placed on administrative leave, court spokesman Dennis Smith confirmed Monday.

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By Brian Rokos, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 04/14/16 – 1:21 PM PDT |

A state judicial panel has proposed redistributing vacant judgeships from counties where there are too many to counties where there are too few, including Riverside and San Bernardino counties, where a lack of judges has caused hundreds of cases to be dismissed.

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Board of Supervisors’ lack of knowledge in county affairs part of the ‘culture,’ attorney says

By Matthew Cabe
Staff Writer
Follow @@DP_MatthewCabe
Posted: Apr. 13, 2016 at 5:48 PM
Updated: April 14, 2016 at 8:43 AM

SAN BERNARDINO — A jury voted 11-1 Monday to award a former San Bernardino County Fire Department division chief more than $700,000 in damages related to an age discrimination case against the county and its fire department, according to the plaintiff’s attorneys.

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San Bernardino County Chief Executive Officer Greg Devereaux was a key witness in a case where a local civil jury is making the county pay $704,000.

Wednesday, April 13, 2016 – 10:00 a.m.

**Verdict Form PDF has been fixed***

A jury award in an unlawful termination case against San Bernardino County speaks volumes as to why the county, up until now, has never taken cases to trial in recent history.

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County Supervisors up legal services contract by $400K

By Shea Johnson
Staff Writer
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Posted Apr. 12, 2016 at 4:25 PM

SAN BERNARDINO — Attorney fees could rise above $1 million in the county’s lawsuit against the architectural and design firms of the High Desert Detention Center expansion in Adelanto, which was completed in February 2014 after falling nearly $29 million over budget.

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By Matthew Cabe, Staff Writer
Posted Mar. 23, 2016 – Updated at 11:18 PM

• Attorneys document issues, inaccuracies

SAN BERNARDINO — Public access to online criminal court records in San Bernardino County has significantly decreased as of late.

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Study: County paid $5M in settlements between 1989-2012

By Shea Johnson
Staff Writer
Posted Mar. 19, 2016 at   – 12:01 AM
Updated Mar 19, 2016 at –  6:57 PM

More than $5 million in settlements were paid out in San Bernardino County between 1989 and 2012 for “faulty” felony convictions, according to a UC Berkley School of Law study.

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Attorney James Crawford was injured in a fight with an Orange County district attorney’s investigator at a Santa Ana courthouse. (Courtesy of Jerry Steering)

Christopher Goffard
March 15, 2016

Attorneys for a man accused in a Lake Forest assault have asked that the Orange County district attorney’s office be thrown off the case, citing “a pattern of intimidation” against defense witnesses — most recently when one of the district attorney’s investigators bloodied an attorney in a courthouse hallway.

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Published: March 11, 2016
Updated:   March 13, 2016 – 7:48 p.m.

Between 1989 and 2012, Riverside and San Bernardino counties paid a combined $10,653,000 in settlements and legal fees in 193 cases where defendants claimed they were wrongfully arrested or prosecuted.

To read article by Brian Rokos in The Press-Enterprise, click here.

Paige St. John
March 11, 2016

A study of more than 600 overturned felony convictions in California calculates the cost of those botched cases to taxpayers at more than $220 million over two decades.

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Defense attorney James Crawford, who recently won a victory in a court case connected to the ongoing informant scandal, said he was attacked by a District Attorney’s investigator on Wednesday. (Courtesy of Jerry Steering)

By Sean Emery, Tony Saavedra and Scott Schwebke / Staff Writers
March 11, 2016 – Updated 8:04 a.m.

SANTA ANA – An Orange County defense attorney on Thursday launched an online petition calling for the arrest of a district attorney’s investigator involved in a courthouse altercation with Orange lawyer James Crawford.

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Attorney James Crawford shown after an alleged fight Wednesday involving an Orange County district attorney’s investigator at a Santa Ana courthouse. (Courtesy of Jerry Steering)

Richard Winton
March 9, 2016

The 10th floor of a Santa Ana courthouse was the site of a bloody brawl Wednesday between a defense attorney and an investigator from the Orange County district attorney’s office, authorities said.

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