Voice of OC reports this morning on a New Years Eve order from Orange County Superior Court Judge David T. McEachen to make public more than two dozen sets of documents that shed some light on how officials handled allegations that former Public Works executive Carlos Bustamante sexually assaulted women who worked for him.
From the story:
The order, by Judge David T. McEachen, is the culmination of a two-year open records case brought against the county by Voice of OC and open government advocates Californians Aware.
“We are pleased that we have finally prevailed on this long and hard-fought battle,” said Voice of OC and Californians Aware attorney Kelly Aviles, “but disappointed that it takes so much work to get documents the public was legally entitled to in the first place.”
Among the documents county officials now will have to make public is all of a reportedly politically explosive letter that former Orange County deputy CEO Alisa Drakodaidis leveled at District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and several members of the Board of Supervisors, especially Supervisor Pat Bates, in connection with the Bustamante case.
Bates and others have denied any validity to the allegations leveled by Drakodaidis in her claim letter against the county.
Yet in his Dec. 31 decision, McEachen repeatedly wrote “the public’s interest in disclosure outweighs any interest that could justify secrecy” as he ordered the release of one document after another.Of the Drakodaidis letter, the judge wrote “…the County must produce the unredacted letter in its entirety.”
We can say over here at TheLiberalOC; This is going to be fun, err.. disgusting, err.. both.
“Beware the approaching storm, for there is nowhere to hide. The truth will be revealed, in spite of all the lies.”
This is good news because now we get to see how these guys are protected by the GOP establishment and their associated apologists. Same goes for the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce. We w\ill see what Matt Cunningham was paid and or not paid to do or did so at the behest of the Chamber. In this case with Bustamante and then County, I hope some heads roll at the top and like crabs in a bucket they pull down everyone around them.