Alatorre Told of Recent Drug Use, Doctor Says

Los Angeles Councilman Richard Alatorre has admitted using cocaine the day before he tested positive in a surprise court-ordered screening, according to a physician named to oversee a rehabilitation program for the lawmaker.

Nationally recognized addiction specialist Joe Takamine said Monday that the councilman acknowledged “very rare” cocaine use in the last 10 years. That would be contrary to Alatorre’s sworn testimony in a child guardianship case and to his public remarks.

Takamine was selected by Superior Court Judge Henry W. Shatford to approve a drug treatment program for Alatorre. The internist co-founded the chemical dependency center at St. John’s Health Center in Santa Monica.

Alatorre recently told the doctor that he used cocaine the day before the unannounced test in the judge’s chambers Sept. 17, according to Takamine.

“In the last several years, he told me he used a couple of times. And that was one of them,” the doctor said.

Takamine spoke in a telephone interview Monday, two weeks after he was given the job of overseeing Alatorre’s treatment. The doctor’s comments were the first authoritative indication that Alatorre has acknowledged recent cocaine use.

The councilman declined Monday to discuss his conversations with Takamine. “That’s between him and I,” said Alatorre, who was at home recovering from recent diaphragm surgery.

During the guardianship hearing, Alatorre said that he was a recovering cocaine addict but had not used the drug in about nine years.

But the surprise drug test ordered by Shatford showed that Alatorre had recently used cocaine.

Ruling that Alatorre was still a drug user, Shatford stripped the councilman of the guardianship of his 10-year-old niece.

Alatorre aides at first said the councilman would challenge the test. But last week, his attorney quietly withdrew a motion asking for a formal review of the surprise screening. He did this by taking the item off the court calendar. But he did not return phone calls from reporters seeking an explanation of his action.

In an interview after meeting with the judge, the lawyer representing the firm that tested Alatorre said it was his understanding that there is no longer a challenge to the drug test.

Rick Augustini, the lawyer, said that the drug testing firm, Scientific America, wanted another drug company to perform a second test as a way of upholding the quality of its work.

But “Mr. Alatorre has declined that invitation,” he said.

Takamine, in the interview, gave some details of what would be expected of Alatorre in the rehabilitation program.

First of all, he would have to comply with the judge’s order for detoxification before he can regain visitation rights.

But detoxification is just a step in a rehabilitation program. That would be followed by extensive counseling sessions and, in Alatorre’s case, random drug testing.

Takamine said it was unclear when the councilman might enter drug treatment, but it would probably occur after he recovers from the recent surgery. One option would be for the councilman to enter the drug rehabilitation program at St. John’s.

The doctor said he is developing guidelines for the councilman’s treatment, including the random drug testing, as ordered by the judge.

“I will say this, the guy has a great stake in [this],” Takamine said. “It involves his whole life.”

Asked if he accepted the councilman’s assertion that his drug use has been rare, the doctor said that the more important issue is what Alatorre does in the future.

“I’m interested in getting a program to get him clean and sober so he can lead a normal life,” Takamine said. “What’s past is past.”

In addition to dealing with the drug abuse issue, Alatorre is confronting a barrage of legal, political and financial challenges.

A federal grand jury is poring over the councilman’s official actions and personal finances as part of a far-reaching corruption probe.

The 25-year veteran of elected office also faces large legal bills as he struggles to raise funds for perhaps the toughest reelection campaign of his career next April.

Long a major power broker in California politics, Alatorre has been buffeted by controversy. Last year, he paid $8,000 in penalties to state and local agencies after acknowledging that he improperly intervened in a licensing matter involving a firm founded by his wife, Angie.

Investigations by The Times also have raised questions about his dealings with special interests, including a waste hauling contractor he had aggressively backed for government business.

Witnesses said that until 1995, Alatorre repeatedly used cocaine with the contractor, a longtime friend who was once convicted of possessing and intending to distribute heroin. Both men denied the accusations, attributing them to disgruntled and unreliable former employees.