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BY BRIAN HEWS
Hews Media Group-Los Cerritos Community News has exclusively learned that embattled Central Basin Water Director and State Senate District 33 candidate Leticia Vasquez has been removed from her seat on the Metropolitan Water District Board.
She was removed today during the regular board meeting of the Commerce-based water agency.
The removal might pose a huge problem for her struggling campaign.
And Vasquez was not happy about the removal.
Even though several items remained on the board agenda, it was reported that Vasquez immediately got up after the vote and left the meeting.
The charge to remove Vasquez from the “Met Board,” which will cost her thousands in stipends, was led by long-time Central Basin Director Art Chacon.
When contacted by HMG-LCCN, Chacon said, “the majority of the board members wanted her off the Met Board, she just has way too many problems and lawsuits.”
The vote was a resounding 6-2, with Chacon, President Bob Apodaca, VP John Oskoui, Director Phil Hawkins, and newcomer Directors Dan Arrighi and Frank Heldman voting to remove the acerbic Vasquez.
The other yes vote to allow Vasquez to remain was cast by Martha Camacho-Rodriguez, who questionably serves as both a Central Basin Water Director and a Trustee on the Cerritos College Board, and was endorsed by Vasquez.
The move comes after HMG-LCCN published two scathing articles about Vasquez and her questionable exploits in local politics.
Last week, HMG-LCCN first reported on the deadbeat lawsuit filed against Vasquez by her longtime political advisor Angel Gonzalez.
In his complaint, Gonzales provided strong evidence that Vasquez burned him for over $14,000 in election expenses.
He produced evidence in the form of an email from Vasquez stating, “I will pay you two weeks after the election.”
Vasquez claimed that Gonzales was “negligent” even though she won the 2016 election to the Central Basin board with Gonzales as her advisor.
This past weekend, a darker version of Vasquez emerged in the 33rd State Senate race.
HMG-LCCN reported that Vasquez had threatened, via a letter from her oft-used attorney-husband Ron Wilson, other District 33 candidates and their supporters using a bogus defamation lawsuit.
The hollow threat demanded that the candidates cease from talking about the defamation suit that they lost against HMG-LCCN in 2017.
Hews’ winning attorney, Scott Talkov, of Talkov Law, chuckled at the letter.
“Unless people speaking poorly about Vasquez have knowledge of falsity or a reckless disregard for the truth, any lawsuit by Vazquez would be dismissed by the court and attorney’s fees ordered against Vasquez,” Talkov stated.
President Bob Apodaca will now represent CB on the Met Board.
Emails to Vasquez and her husband went unreturned.
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Boom! The hood-rat got kicked to the curb with the rest of the week’s garbage. Can you dig it!
Finally a Board with balls. This woman has been such an embarrassment for community. I imagine the people of Lynwood must be disgusted that their rejected and recalled former Mayor actually slithered her way back into office? Thank you Los Cerritos News for bringing us this uplifting story. Now if the voters in the 33rd Senate District only read this story and told all their friends!!
Letitia has been a thorn in the side of every decent human being in the South East Cities and beyond. Thanks again Brian Hews for excellent reporting.