• Facebook
  • Google Plus
  • Instagram
  • RSS Feed
  • Twitter

Menu

Skip to content
  • About
  • Staff
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • FAQ
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
Header image

MyNewsLA.comLogo

Breaking news for greater Los Angeles and Orange County

Menu

Skip to content
  • Crime
  • Government
  • Business
  • Education
  • Hollywood
  • Life
  • OC
  • Riverside
  • Weather
  • COVID Numbers Continue Downward Pace In LACo, Though Daily Deaths Remain High
  • Missing Woman, 28, Last Seen in Temple City Found
  • Firefighter Injured in Blaze That Spread to 3 Buildings in Westlake
  • Fred Segal, Pioneering L.A. Fashion Retailer, Dies at 87
  • LAPD Seeks Suspect Who Smashed Front Window, Lit Fire at Buddhist Temple

Home » Crime » This Article

Transcripts: Prosecutors Say Pougnet Was On Developers’ Payroll

Posted by Contributing Editor on March 4, 2020 in Crime | Leave a response
Share this article:
Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Ex-Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet planned to move to Colorado to join his husband and two children when his first term ended in 2011, but two developers put him “on their payroll” in order to secure his votes on their projects, prosecutors told a grand jury that returned an indictment in the case, according to transcripts released Wednesday.

More than 700 pages of grand jury transcripts were unsealed in the case of Pougnet, 56, and developers John Elroy Wessman, 81, and Richard Hugh Meaney, 54, who were indicted on 30 bribery and corruption charges last summer.

Defense attorneys for the trio sought to have the transcripts, which include testimony from 13 witnesses, sealed until the end of the trial, arguing that reporting on the material might taint the defendants’ chances of getting a fair trial.

“This is a case about political corruption in the city of Palm Springs,” Riverside County Deputy District Attorney Amy Barajas told 19 grand jurors in August, according to the transcripts. “What kind of corruption? Well, one of the oldest stories in the book. Some wealthy real estate developers get a politician on their payroll, and in exchange they get favorable treatment, inside access and large contracts.”

Prosecutors allege Pougnet pocketed a total of $375,000 between 2012 and 2014 to vote favorably certain development projects when they came up before the Palm Springs City Council.

Transcripts: Prosecutors Say Pougnet Was On Developers’ Payroll was last modified: March 4th, 2020 by Contributing Editor

>> Want to read more stories like this? Get our Free Daily Newsletters Here!

Follow us:
Facebooktwitterrss
Posted in Crime | Tagged developers, Payroll, Pougnet, prosecutors, Transcripts

Advertisement

Get The Latest News by Email!

Sign up here for our free newsletters. We’ll send you the latest headlines every morning and every weekday afternoon.

 
FORECAST FOR LOS ANGELES
64°
Sunny
Feels like: 64°F
Wind: 3mph SW
Humidity: 29%
Pressure: 29.92"Hg
UV index: 0
SatSunMon
73/48°F
72/46°F
73/46°F
Weather forecast Los Angeles, California ▸

Most Popular Today

  • Homeless Woman Raped, Then Found Dead On Pomona Street: Homeless Suspect Says ‘Not Guilty’ 3,000 views
  • Daddy Molests 18-Month-Old Son, Films It All With Girlfriend’s Help In Desert Hot Springs? Pair Pleads ‘Not Guilty’ 2,600 views
  • Wife Allegedly Helped Hubby’s Repeated Sex Assaults On Young Teen Girl Relative: Wife Pleads ‘Not Guilty,’ Victim Gives Birth 1,800 views
  • Helpless Little Girl Molested Repeatedly For 18 Months? Woman Suspect Allegedly Assisted Palm Springs Rapist 1,600 views
  • Man Shot, Killed Outside Taco Truck in Downtown Los Angeles 1,600 views

©2021 CalNews Inc.

Menu

  • About
  • Staff
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • FAQ
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service