By Eduardo Rueda, Investigative Reporter
chula vista City Councilman John McCann, Photo by Sean M. Haffey
Chula Vista City Councilman John McCann continues raising money to retire debt from his 2014 campaign.
McCann, a Republican, won a bitterly fought race against former Mayor Steve Padilla, a Democrat. The two candidates ended up tied on election night, and after a few rounds of re-counts and challenges, McCann emerged the winner by a margin of only 2 votes.
During the campaign leading up to the election, McCann raised a total of $41,129 but ended up spending $99,075. The majority of the outstanding debt was for campaign mailing services totaling $40,662, as well as $5,000 win bonus to his political consultant.
By Eduardo Rueda / Investigative Reporter
San Ysidro School District’s former Superintendent cashed out the value of a life insurance policy last year without the approval of the school board.
Julio Fonseca, who served as Superintendent from July 2015 until he abruptly resigned last month after a sexual harassment claim was filed against him by a female District employee, cashed out $106,000 in payments allegedly in exchange for a life insurance policy granted to him in his employment contract.
Fonseca’s original employment contract with the District, approved in June 2015, included a base salary of $185,000, a $600 monthly expense allowance, $7,500 for moving expenses, $10,000 for relocation costs, 24 vacation days per year, 24 sick or personal days off per year, full health insurance benefits for him and his family, and a “District-paid term life policy in a benefit amount of $100,000.”
School Lawyers Under Increasing Scrutiny
By Eduardo Rueda, Investigative Reporter
A San Diego-based law firm known for representing public entities has come under increased scrutiny for its legal work in various local school districts.
The law firm of Stutz, Artiano, Shinoff & Holtz has represented most of San Diego’s 42 school districts over the past 15 years. Its most visible lawyer, Daniel Shinoff, has played a role in many high profile school district cases throughout the county.
Earlier this year, the firm was sued for malpractice by the San Ysidro School District for allegedly failing to inform that school board of potential settlement offers during a case and for breach of its fiduciary duty to the district. The law firm settled the case for $2 million at the first mediation between the parties, before any depositions were taken or binding arbitration sessions started. The District received a net payout of over $1.8 million after paying outside legal fees. The District
Todd Gloria Says He’s ‘the Son of a Maid and a Gardener’, But Critics Question Accuracy
(Pictured above, Todd Gloria with his parents, Phil and Linda Gloria, and his partner, Adam Smith, on March 3, 2020, at Registrar of Voters. Photo credit John Gibbins / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Investigative Reporter
State Assemblyman and candidate for Mayor of San Diego Todd Gloria has consistently told voters that he’s become a successful community leader having been raised as
“the son of a maid and a gardener” as a way to demonstrate that he’s not part of the elite political establishment, but that narrative is now being challenged after he admitted his “mom and dad were a maid and a gardener in the 1970s” before he was born and his dad has been an aerospace industry executive for most of Todd’s lifetime.
CV’s Steve Padilla Continues Habit of Running Up Debts
By Eduardo Rueda – Investigative Reporter
Former Chula Vista Mayor Steve Padilla, running for a seat on the Chula Vista City Council, is accused of running his current campaign with over $16,000 in unpaid bills, even as he continues to carry over $35,000 in debt from his past campaigns.
As of his official election report of September 24, Padilla’s current campaign showed a total debt of $16,578.93 in unpaid bills.
A citizen’s complaint prepared this week alleges Padilla has violated Chula Vista’s elections laws by not paying his campaign bills. Specifically, the Chula Vista City Municipal Code states that “A loan or extension of credit shall be considered a contribution from the maker of the loan or extender of credit and shall