Enjoy the peaceful council meetings

Interesting story about the mayor and the city council this week.

No, neither of ours. It happened in South Gate at last Monday’s

city council meeting. Do you know where South Gate is? No one else

does either. The only way you’d end up in South Gate is if you were

on the Long Beach Freeway (a serious mistake to begin with) and you

ran out of gas midway between Long Beach and downtown L.A. What does

any of this have to do with us? I will tell you.

Over the years, whenever someone says a city council meeting in

Newport Beach or Costa Mesa got out of hand, I fight hard to keep a

straight face and exhibit a serious and respectful demeanor. I

suggest, quietly, that if they think public meetings in these parts

are wild and wooly, they really need to invest an evening in some

other city council chambers. Compared to council meetings in certain

cities -- some of them just a stone’s throw away -- ours seem like

the United States Supreme Court in session.

South Gate, Calif. Where does one begin? A number of South Gate

City Council members, two of whom are cousins, and a few staffers at

South Gate City Hall, have been under investigation by the Los

Angeles District Attorney and the FBI for at least a year on

suspicion of corruption, misuse of millions of dollars in public

funds, various kick-back schemes, death threats to public officials,

including two state legislators, and some really bad stuff. A key

figure in the drama is City Treasurer Albert Robles. Actually, Robles

is the former city treasurer. In April of last year, Robles was

arrested outside his townhouse on a number of charges and led away in

handcuffs. The response from the City Council was swift and decisive.

While Robles was awaiting trial, the council promoted him to Deputy

City Manager, with a contract that included $180,000 severance pay,

even if he were convicted.

According to Joe Ruiz, a South Gate business owner and City

Council regular -- whose fleet of trucks was firebombed in 2001 --

“This is the Twilight Zone of politics. People don’t believe what

goes on here. You have to tell them step by step, and they’re still

like, ‘No, no, it couldn’t be.’” If Ruiz thinks it’s been the

Twilight Zone so far, things reached “The Outer Limits” at Monday’s

council meeting.

At the end of January, the City Council majority, led by Mayor

Xochilt Ruvalcaba, was recalled by a large margin in a special

election. Last Monday, it was standing room only in the council

chambers, as South Gate residents turned out to watch the final

moments of the recalled council members, including Mayor Ruvalcaba

and Councilwoman Maria Benavides, who is the mayor’s cousin.

Since her swearing-in two years ago, Councilwoman Benavides has

not uttered a word at a council meeting other than voting “yea” or

“nay.” Even then, she speaks in an extremely soft, kitten-like voice,

which always causes subdued laughter in the audience, and has earned

her the nickname “meow lady.” At one meeting, the mayor called for

the question then turned quickly toward her cousin and said “Maria

... nay” without bothering to cover her microphone. “Nay,” whispered

the councilwoman dutifully, bringing down the house.

Monday night’s meeting started bad and got worse, fast. According

to the Los Angeles Times, during Oral Communications, with the

meeting barely begun, Mayor Ruvalcaba tried to stop a long-time

council critic named Bill DeWitt from speaking, saying that she

didn’t have a formal request from him. DeWitt quickly produced a time

and date-stamped paper, confirming that he had turned in a request to

speak. When the city attorney advised the council that DeWitt should

be allowed to speak, the crowd started to chant “Let him talk. Let

him talk!” The Mayor asked to see DeWitt’s receipt, quickly announced

a five-minute recess, then jumped from her chair and headed for the

door. Councilman Henry Gonzales -- one of the two council members not

recalled -- got up, blocked the mayor’s path, and demanded that she

return the document to DeWitt. A screaming, grunting tug-of-war

between the mayor and the council member ensued, which sent the crowd

into an ear-splitting frenzy of applause and boos. Without warning,

the mayor slugged Councilman Gonzales in the face (it was a right

hook) then ran from the council chambers, receipt in hand.

Two South Gate police officers at the meeting took off after the

mayor, hurdling the wooden railing below the dais in hot pursuit. The

audience, barely able to contain itself at this point, started

chanting “Arrest the mayor! Arrest the mayor!” Said South Gate Police

Officer Tony Mendez, “Did you see that? She just popped him!”

After the meeting, the officers cited Mayor Ruvalcaba for

misdemeanor battery, but the mayor tried to make a citizen’s arrest

of Councilman Gonzalez, who she claimed fondled her during the

tug-of-war, which led to the right hook, which Gonzalez said was a

lot of hooey. Shirley Bobrick -- a South Gate senior citizen and a

longtime council-watcher expressed the emotions of most people at the

meeting when she said she hoped that the city’s ordeal was finally

coming to an end. For Bobrick it’s personal. Last year, Mayor

Ruvalcaba sought a restraining order against her, claiming that

Bobrick hit her over the head with court documents.

Speaking of seniors, people at Monday night’s meeting were

concerned about Councilman Gonzalez who is 67 years old and walks

with a cane, but he just shrugged it off. “A bullet bounced off my

head,” said Gonzalez, “so I can take a punch.”

Oh yeah, I forgot. During his term as mayor in 1999, Gonzalez was

shot in the head by an unknown assailant. The shooting has never been

solved, but most people assume it was politically motivated. Well, OK

then. Any further discussion? I didn’t think so. We stand adjourned.

I gotta go.

* PETER BUFFA is a former Costa Mesa mayor. His column runs

Sundays. He may be reached by e-mail at [email protected].