"Criminal Aspects": City Attorney Carmen Trutanich at the Grand Crossing

 I’ve turned up some curious facts in my ongoing investigation of Los Angeles city attorney, Carmen Trutanich. Even at the beginning of his term, his career was off to a weird start.

“Trutanich was sworn into office on July 1, 2009, six days after Jackson’s death and amid world wide media attention. On July 7, that attention focused on downtown Los Angeles, shut down for a memorial service at the Staples Center.” [1]

Trutanich is quoted as saying,

“The City Attorney’s Office Bureau of Investigations is continuing to actively review the events leading up to the events held at the Staples Center and at LA Live venues downtown [...] Our investigation has taken an unanticipated turn that raises both civil and criminal aspects.” [1]

I wondered why the newly elected city attorney would make this his top priority. One would expect him to lead with gangs, drugs, or graffiti. I have no way of knowing for certain what his motives were in pursuing a rather abstruse and unpopular goal, but here are some things worth noting.

Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), which hosted the Michael Jackson tribute at its Staples Center, is one company which aims to bring a football stadium to Downtown Los Angeles—a project they’re calling Farmer’s Field.

“The planned 72,000-seat stadium is to be squeezed between Staples Center and L.A. Live and take over for a demolished West Hall of the Convention Center.” [2]

Further research into Los Angeles development projects lead me to the public record of campaign contributions relating to Trutanich’s upcoming bid for district attorney (the city attorney had campaigned on a pledge to serve out his term, and has been criticized for reneging by running for DA). [3]

Among the many names listed, I found several executives (and one spouse) of real estate development and construction firms that made individual contributions to Trutanich’s campaign. [4] 

It so happens that Edward P. Roski’s Majestic Realty Co. (along with Commerce Construction Co.) is also at work on its own stadium project in the City of Industry.

“There is a competing project [to AEG’s Farmer’s Field]. Ed Roski has a site in City of Industry — the area of the proposed stadium was recently renamed Grand Crossing — and that piece of land is fully entitled for a venue, no small feat.” [5]

“Farmer’s Field [AEG's proposed stadium in downtown Los Angeles] is one of two proposed stadiums [emphasis added] intended to draw an NFL team to Los Angeles for the first time since the Raiders left in 1994 (the Rams left Anaheim that same year). A second stadium was proposed in 2008 by Ed Roski Jr.’s Majestic Realty for the City of Industry, in an area Majestic has referred to as Grand Crossing.” [6]

“Los Angeles Football Stadium is the working title for a proposed 75,000-seat football stadium, the centerpiece of a 600-acre entertainment district in Industry, California. Upon construction, the district will be named Grand Crossing, California. Edward P. Roski, a part-owner of the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA and Los Angeles Kings of the NHL[…]” [7]

“Several other sites are being mentioned as possible locations for a new stadium. Roski’s former business partner AEG, headed by Tim Leiweke, is leading a group which proposes building Farmers Field near the Staples Center in downtown L.A.” [8]

Interestingly, city attorney Trutanich is receiving money from the competitor to a company which seems to have earned Los Angeles mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa’s endorsement. In an article titled Huge Subsidy for Stadium Architect [9], LA Weekly said this about the mayor’s relationship to AEG’s project:

“Villaraigosa quietly plans to hand Gensler $1 million meant for the poor” [9]

Several questions remain unanswered:

* Did Carmen Trutanich receive campaign contributions from Majestic Realty, or Commerce Construction, in his successful bid for the office of city attorney?

* Would that have influenced his decision to investigate their competitor, AEG, immediately upon his taking office?

* Why is Trutanich receiving contributions from a direct competitor to AEG, whose partner in their stadium project, Gensler Architecture received $1,000,000 in subsidies from the mayor?

—

SOURCES:

[1] http://losangelesdragnet.blogspot.com/search/label/Micheal%20Jackson%20Memorial

[2] http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/sports_blog/2011/11/aeg-farmers-field-new-design.html

[3] http://blogs.laweekly.com/informer/2011/04/carmen_trutanich_forms_committ.php

[4] Contributions to Trutanich For District Attorney 2012 Exploratory Committee
(it doesn’t list city attorney among its filings, so I don’t know who funded that campaign, only his current bid for DA)
http://efs.lacounty.gov/public_search_results.cfm?orderby=RPT_AMOUNT&orderbydesc=yes&showall=yes&requesttimeout=1000&rept_type=ALLCon&CITY=la&S_USER=%27inttrutanich%27&ELECTION_ID=16&SCHEDULE=A%2CB%2CC

[5] http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/25/sports/la-sp-0325-nfl-stadium-20110325

[6] http://laist.com/2011/03/25/gensler_wins_bid_to_design_downtown.php]

[7] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_Stadium

[8] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_Stadium#Rival_sites

[9] http://www.laweekly.com/2011-04-21/news/huge-subsidy-for-stadium-architect/

* AEG reveals new, open design for Farmers Field
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/sports_blog/2011/11/aeg-farmers-field-new-design.html

* Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anschutz_Entertainment_Group#Michael_Jackson

* The Trutanich Scandals – ‘Criminal Aspects’Gate – Trutanich channels Joseph McCarthy
http://losangelesdragnet.blogspot.com/search/label/Micheal%20Jackson%20Memorial

* AEG president says Trutanich tried to ‘bully’ company on Jackson costs
http://articles.latimes.com/2009/oct/22/local/me-aeg22