Just hours after his term ended, former Los Angeles City Councilman Gil Cedillo released a statement Dec. 12, defending his decision not to step down from his seat over his participation in a racist 2021 conversation that involved three other officials. Cedillo lost his re-election bid to Eunisses Hernandez in June—months before the conversation between…

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) issued a search warrant to Reddit Nov. 29 to identify the person responsible for the recent leak of the racially disparaging conversation between former Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez and other local officials. According to an LAPD statement to The Epoch Times, the department “has opened an…

LOS ANGELES—The city council voted 10–0 Nov. 2 to seek clarification on what signifies a council member having vacated their office, as Councilmen Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo continue to resist calls to resign for their role in the City Hall racism scandal. Neither de León nor Cedillo has attended a council meeting since…

LOS ANGELES—After another raucous start to its meeting, the Los Angeles City Council voted Oct. 26 to approve a pair of motions to censure Councilmen Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo for their roles in the City Hall racism scandal. The city council voted 12–0 to approve the motions, which is the first time the…

LOS ANGELES—Embattled City Councilman Kevin de León will not be excused from council meetings as he continues to defy widespread calls to resign over his involvement in the City Hall racism scandal, Council President Paul Krekorian wrote in a letter to de León Oct. 24. Krekorian responded to a letter that de León sent last…

LOS ANGELES—The Los Angeles City Council is set to resume in-person meetings next week in the council chamber, according to the city clerk’s office Oct. 21. The agenda for next Tuesday and Wednesday’s meeting, posted Friday afternoon, notes the meeting location as the council chamber at City Hall. A representative from the city clerk’s office…

LOS ANGELES—A special election to fill the Sixth District seat vacated by Nury Martinez’s resignation for her involvement in the city hall racism scandal could cost Los Angeles up to an estimated $7.65 million, the city clerk’s office said Oct. 21. The election would take place on April 4, 2023, at the earliest, with a…

LOS ANGELES—Acting Los Angeles City Council President Mitch O’Farrell said Oct. 17 that he will remove Councilmen Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo from their committee assignments, though he had no update on whether the two embattled council members will resign their seats over their involvement in a racism scandal surrounding the city’s redistricting process….

The Los Angeles City Council’s next two meetings will be conducted remotely due to the possible COVID exposure after Councilman Mike Bonin tested positive Oct. 12 for COVID-19. Bonin was present at the council meeting earlier that day. “With the possibility that there will be more positive cases, out of an abundance of caution we will…

A couple dozen of protesters showed up outside Los Angeles City Councilman Kevin de León’s El Sereno offices Oct. 13, pressuring him to resign for his participation in a recorded conversation involving four elected officials that included a series of racially charged remarks and discussions over redistricting. Two of them—former Council President Nury Martinez and former…