Mayor pleads not guilty to funds misuse

Inglewood Mayor Roosevelt Dorn pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges of conflict of interest and misappropriation of $500,000 in public funds. The accusations stem from a city low-interest loan program originally intended to help Inglewood administrators live in town.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Terry White told the court that Dorn, a former judge, had until Aug. 21 to take a deal his office had offered. Neither White nor Albert DeBlanc, Dorn’s attorney, would comment on the offer.

Dorn, 72, an ordained clergyman, was once a sheriff’s deputy and an assistant Los Angeles city attorney. As a Municipal Court and Superior Court judge, he was known for his tough attitude toward crime.

The three-term mayor borrowed the $500,000 in November 2005, five months after he voted to extend the loan program to elected officials. His 30-year loan came with a variable interest rate of 2.39%, much less than the market rate.

Dorn used the funds to pay off his mortgage and allegedly put the remaining $266,000 in the bank. He repaid the loan in October 2006. If convicted of all counts, Dorn faces a maximum of four years and eight months in prison.

-- Jeff Gottlieb