Chivalry at its Finest! Federal prosecutors gave Michael S. Carona, 52, multiple chances to save his wife and one of his mistresses from aggressive federal prosecution if he agreed to plead guilty on corruption and obstruction of justice charges. But the self-styled Christian conservative sheriff resisted. Carona wanted to save his own ass, a source told Gil Reza and Christine Hanley for a story today in the LA Times. The sheriff offered to resign if the feds would let him escape all charges. Prosecutors weren’t idiots and now Carona, wife Deborah, 56, and mistress Debra V. Hoffman, 41, face prison if convicted of turning the Orange County Sheriff’s Department into two parts whorehouse, three parts crime scene and more than a dash of self aggrandizement. Meanwhile, Carona pleaded not guilty, asked for the presumption of innocence and—get this shameless clown—thanked the media he loathes for coming to the Ronald Reagan Federal Courthouse for his arraignment. Sure, Mikey. Anytime. Supervisor John Moorlach will renew his call for the sheriff to resign at today’s county board meeting, according to Peggy Lowe at the Register. And I can’t forget: Yesterday at the Reg’s online editorial section, Steven Greenhut slammed Carona spinster Mike Schroeder for what he sees as Schroeder's silly defense of the sheriff. Rumors are swirling about Schroeder because of his relationships with Carona and two of his convicted felon assistant sheriffs: Don Haidl and George Jaramillo. I wasn’t successful reaching Schroeder last night but figured I’d find out exactly what he was thinking in Martin Wisckol’s Total Buzz briefs. And finally: I've been stuck in court but I heard that John and Ken on KFI 640 AM radio are nailing Carona daily. Now, he's toast.
What a Bargain: Two years ago, a city in Vermont paid $4,559 for a “mobile vision video recording” system for its police department. That price included all upgrades. The Daily Pilot reports this week that the bureaucrats in Costa Mesa will ask the city council to purchase 49 of the system for an alleged total (never trust the government to stick to its spending promises) of $440,356.04. Hmmm. Subtract the six. Carry the one. I suck at math, but it appears that Costa Mesa police want taxpayers to spend a whopping $8,980 for each system. (That's almost double the price the Vermont folks paid.) Be careful guys. If you spend too much money on your toys, you might not have enough to persecute Benito Acosta the next time he dares address government officials.
Best Headline of the Day! Belongs to the folks not at a newspaper but at the homepage for KCBS Channel 2 in Los Angeles: “Cal State Fullerton Pulls Out of Condom Plan.”
That's almost as funny as a recent Register headline: “Indictment Tarnishes Carona.” Ya think?
— R. Scott Moxley / OC Weekly
CNN-featured investigative reporter R. Scott Moxley has won Journalist of the Year honors at the Los Angeles Press Club; been named Distinguished Journalist of the Year by the LA Society of Professional Journalists; obtained one of the last exclusive prison interviews with Charles Manson disciple Susan Atkins; won inclusion in Jeffrey Toobin’s The Best American Crime Reporting for his coverage of a white supremacist’s senseless murder of a beloved Vietnamese refugee; launched multi-year probes that resulted in the FBI arrests and convictions of the top three ranking members of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department; and gained praise from New York Times Magazine writers for his “herculean job” exposing entrenched Southern California law enforcement corruption.