Hahn Files Suit, Cites Bradley Ethics Apathy : Exonerated by Investigation, Mayor Says

A stubbornly defiant Mayor Tom Bradley on Wednesday declared himself exonerated by the city attorney’s decision not to file criminal charges against him and called for an end to the “almost daily barrage of speculation and innuendo” that has embroiled his Administration.

Ignoring strongly critical language in a report by City Atty. James K. Hahn, Bradley said that he was “gratified that the city attorney cut through the misconceptions and determined that no legal violation of conflict of interest took place” with regard to his personal finances.

“When all is said and done, the inquiry confirms what I have said all along: I did not engage in conflicts of interest,” the mayor said. “I did not violate the public’s trust. . . . As far as I’m concerned, this matter is now behind us.”

Financial Holdings

The extraordinary 40-minute speech--carried on three network-affiliated television stations--and a later question-and-answer session occurred only six hours after the city attorney announced he had filed a six-count civil lawsuit alleging that the mayor failed to properly disclose some of his financial holdings.

Hahn’s report, the result of more than five months of investigation into Bradley, concluded that there was insufficient evidence to bring criminal charges against the mayor. But, it added tersely, “no vindication of the mayor is intended, implied or should in any way be inferred.”

In an interview with The Times, Hahn said inconsistencies in Bradley’s interviews with investigators “cast doubt” on his truthfulness.

Bradley’s remarks contained several inconsistencies compared to his previous statements on a variety of substantive matters involved in the investigation, but the mayor made it clear to reporters that he was in no mood to discuss them.

Bradley at one point lectured reporters who asked about his involvement with a controversial African task force: “No, you are not going to get me involved in any further discussion.”

Asked about Hahn’s statement that Bradley had not been vindicated, the mayor accused a reporter of misquoting the city attorney. When another reporter then quoted directly from the city attorney’s statement, Bradley only shrugged and said he did not want to debate “semantics.”

The mayor said of Hahn: “He said he found no evidence that I violated conflict laws. That is the bottom line to the inquiry. That is good enough for me. I’m going to put the matter behind me.”

Speaking from his mahogany-walled City Hall conference room jammed with reporters, Bradley sought to reach out to the voters who elected him the city’s first black mayor in 1973 and who have sent him back to office every four years since, most recently earlier in April for an unprecedented fifth term.

Frequently referring to his 47 years in public service--as a police officer, city councilman and mayor--Bradley grew personal but with understated emotion.

“My friends, I love this city,” he said. “I would never do anything to harm Los Angeles. . . . I hope after all these years, you know the kind of man I am.”

Bradley called the civil action filed by Hahn “far less significant” than the city attorney’s decision not to file criminal charges, even though the lawsuit could result in fines approaching $200,000.

The mayor characterized the civil suit as a move made necessary by mistakes he made in an effort to act as his own accountant: “The errors I made were not deliberate. They show only that I am not an accountant, and that I shouldn’t have tried to be one.”

Public Admission

He also reiterated his public admission of last May, when he told the City Council--and by extension the residents of Los Angeles and his political allies--that he had erred in creating an appearance of conflict of interest in accepting outside income.

“Engaging in outside employment fell short of my own high standard and led to the misperceptions we have all seen,” the mayor, 71, said Wednesday.

The speech was the latest chapter in a political drama that has enveloped the city’s chief executive since the spring, overshadowing his inauguration in July and the opening months of what many perceive as his last term.

Every effort was made to give Bradley the advantage Wednesday evening as he went before reporters and a local television audience. During his speech, the mayor appeared at a wooden desk backed by a telegenic blue drape and three flags--decorations not normally in evidence at a Bradley press conference. Bradley took care to use a TelePrompTer, a machine that displayed to the mayor his words at camera height, so that he did not have to glance at his text.

At the close of his address, he moved to the front of the desk and sat perched before the reporters, responding to questions like a stern schoolteacher before a collection of students. While taking 40 minutes to deliver his speech, he allowed only 20 minutes for questions.

With the city attorney’s decision not to file criminal charges against Bradley, the mayor appears to have at least initially survived what he has described as his worst crisis, although several investigations, including a federal probe of his stock transactions, remain unfinished. Bradley refused to answer questions Wednesday about his stock portfolio.

Bradley also defended his refusal to turn over his income tax returns, as the city attorney had requested.

“You know, you don’t lose the privilege of confidentiality of your income tax forms whether you’re President, governor or mayor,” he said.

In attempting to close the door on the controversy, the mayor acknowledged the scars of the last several months.

“There is no question about the fact that there has been some damage to my reputation for honesty and integrity,” Bradley told reporters.

He added facetiously, “I want to know how you folks are going to give that back to me.”

Earlier this spring, Bradley had vowed to not discuss the full ramifications of the case until the close of the Hahn probe. He said that he would not publicly defend himself because he did not believe his side would receive a fair hearing in the news media.

Detailed Account

While the address was Bradley’s lengthiest and most detailed account of his activities, he broke little new ground concerning the moves that led to the city attorney’s investigation. At the heart of the inquiry were questions of whether Bradley had attempted earlier this year to influence the city treasurer’s office to deposit city funds in Far East National Bank, which last year paid the mayor an $18,000 annual retainer for consulting services.

Bradley declared that he “never directed or pressured” the city treasurer to deposit public funds “in any bank.”

He said he had not considered his contact with City Treasurer Leonard Rittenberg on the matter to be a conflict because “in my mind at the time, the two just didn’t have anything to do with one another.”

Bradley added: “For 15 years, I had never played any role--directly or indirectly--in the deposit of city funds.”

In the Far East episode and other matters under investigation, Bradley attempted to portray himself as simply being responsive to favors requested by constituents.

“Requests from constituents are part of the normal business of the mayor’s office, and I do my best to see that my constituents get the information they request from the city bureaucracy,” Bradley said.

More Bradley Coverage Inside

FAR EAST AFFAIR--Report finds circumstantial evidence that Mayor Tom Bradley used his influence to direct $2 million in city deposits to the Far East National Bank, but not enough proof to bring criminal charges.Page 28

AFRICA TASK FORCE--City Atty. James K. Hahn questions Bradley’s oversight of the task force headed by a business partner of the mayor.Page 28

SPIEGEL CONNECTION--The mayor turned to savings and loan executive Abraham Spiegel for favors, including obtaining a $50,000 loan, but the actions were not illegal, the report concludes.Page 28

LEGAL ISSUES--In deciding to take civil, rather than criminal, action against the mayor for failing to accurately disclose his personal investments, Hahn took a relatively well-worn prosecutorial path.Page 29

REACTION--The mayor’s speech gets mixed reviews.Page 33

MORE DETAILS--Additional stories and photos.Pages 28-37