The Anaheim City Council asked investigators who are now several months into looking at prior dealings on the sale of Angel Stadium, potential broader “pay-to-play” allegations and possible Brown Act violations to use what they have learned so far to refine the scope of the probe, chaffing at a request for an additional $750,000 to finish the work.
In August, the previous council – all but two members are new since November – hired the JL Group for $750,000 to conduct the investigation into past campaign contributions and contracts and official actions following the revelation in the spring that FBI investigators were asking questions about prior dealings in Anaheim and allegations emerged of potential corruption and outside influences at work in City Hall.
The council also hired Clay Smith, a retired Orange County Superior Court judge, to work with JL Group on administering the investigation to maintain distance from City Hall.
On Tuesday, Smith told the new councilmembers the investigation has turned out to be more “complex and time-consuming” than initially expected, offering as evidence that the team originally assumed about 100 witnesses would be interviewed and now that list has doubled and the city has sent over 700,000 potentially relevant emails that are being examined.
He assured the councilmembers the investigators have striven “to balance efficiency and completeness” and they have not wandered from the original scope laid out – though that scope was broad, JL Group leaders also said.
“We are confident what we are asking for will be sufficient to complete the investigation, both in terms of time and the money,” Smith said, giving July 1 as the date by which the final report could be expected.
The investigation team was asked to return at the council’s Feb. 28 meeting with a refined scope and a final dollar amount to fulfill that work.
Councilmember Natalie Rubalcava referred to “an abyss of information we are exploring at…
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