Unfinished sagas

There are several events and issues that will top the news in 2008, including a murder trial, a civil trial and a referendum on where to build the Newport Beach City Hall. Following is a list of what to watch out for this year.

1Hawks murder trials

Skylar Deleon and John F. Kennedy, two of the men indicted in the 2004 slayings of boat owner Tom and Jackie Hawks, are scheduled to go on trial Jan 28.

Deleon’s former wife, Jennifer Henderson Deleon, was convicted in November 2006 and later sentenced to two consecutive life terms. The trials of two others who allegedly conspired with Deleon, Alonso Machain and Myron Gardner, are pending.

Deleon and Kennedy are accused of forcing the Newport Beach yacht owners to sign transfer documents for their vessel, “Well Deserved,” before tying the couple to the anchor and dropping them in the ocean off the coast of California. The bodies have yet to be recovered. Both men face the death penalty if convicted.

2Benito Acosta case

It was Jan. 3, 2006, when Benito Acosta was arrested during a turbulent meeting on Mayor Allan Mansoor’s plan to train Costa Mesa police to enforce immigration laws. And yet, even though the city’s criminal case against him was tossed, it lingers. The city is appealing the dismissal of the case against Acosta for allegedly disrupting the council meeting.

Meanwhile, Acosta, who goes by the name Coyotl Tezcatlipoca, is also waiting for his civil rights lawsuit to go to trial, possibly this spring.

In November, city officials said they have spent nearly $130,000 in legal fees associated with the Acosta case. The ACLU represented Acosta in the criminal case and will continue to do so in the civil suit.

3Rehab homes

Newport Beach City Council members will consider new ordinances to curb the spread of drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers in Newport Beach in January. Many Balboa Peninsula residents said they will accept no less than a 1,000-foot buffer zone between rehabilitation centers they said are a nuisance in coastal neighborhoods on the peninsula, although the city’s special legal counsel has said such a restriction probably wouldn’t hold up in court if it were challenged. The proposed ordinance, as it is written now, would subject the homes to city approval through a hearing process, but changes in the wording of the new rules could still be in the works. If the council approves the ordinance in January, new rules could go into effect as soon as February.

4Newport Beach city hall

Newport Beach voters will decide in February whether the next city hall should be built next to the central library. Measure B would amend the city’s charter to require the next city hall to be erected on a parcel of city-owned land in Newport Beach next to the library on Avocado Avenue.

But the measure could face legal challenges if it passes. Newport Beach activist Allan Beek vowed in December to continue his fight against the measure after a judge rejected his effort to keep it off the ballot.

An Orange County District Court judge ruled against Beek’s temporary restraining order that would have prevented the measure from appearing on the February ballot. But If voters approve the measure, the judge will hear arguments on the lawsuit.

“I think the judge is hoping we will win the election, and we are going to do our best to get him off the hook so he doesn’t have to make a decision about it,” Beek said.

Beek is named as the only party in the suit against Newport Beach City Clerk LaVonne Harkless. The suit alleges the ballot measure is illegal because it leaves the city hall issue up to voters. The suit claims only the City Council has the power to make a decision on the matter.

A 1992 agreement with the Irvine Co. designated part of the Avocado Avenue site as open space, and the majority of the council has rejected using it for a city hall. The group City Hall in the Park collected enough signatures earlier this year to qualify the measure for the ballot. Among other issues, the group contends the property next to the central library is the best place for the next city hall because the city owns the land.

5St. James property battle

Attorneys for St. James Anglican church in Newport Beach in November filed the opening brief in a California Supreme Court property dispute case that could affect churches statewide. Attorneys for both sides of the case believe oral arguments in the case will begin in spring or summer 2008.

The Newport Beach church, which has severed its ties to the Episcopal Church, hopes to have overturned a July appellate court decision giving control of the church property to the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles County.

The brief filed with the California Supreme Court, argues courts should use “neutral principles of law” when settling church property disputes. The appellate court ruling deferred to the decision of church hierarchy.

The legal battle began in 2004, shortly after St. James cut ties with the Episcopal Church. The denomination has been divided since the Episcopal Church consecrated a gay bishop in 2003. St. James subsequently affiliated with the Diocese of Luwero in the Anglican Province of Uganda.

The California Supreme Court also has granted review of three similar church property cases involving All Saints’ Anglican Church in Long Beach, St. David’s in North Hollywood and First Baptist Church in Los Lomas.

The cases are on hold pending the outcome of the St. James case. Four other cases pending in the California Court of Appeal — involving former Russian Orthodox, Assemblies of God and Episcopal churches — will be affected directly by the St. James case.

6Panini Cafe

It didn’t seem like the kind of issue that would start a major controversy. The Panini Cafe, a popular restaurant and bar on East Coast Highway, applied last year to move to a new location — not to another city, not to another street, but just a few doors down to a larger building.

A number of residents in the Corona del Mar neighborhood, however, urged city officials to deny the move, saying another restaurant would worsen traffic and drinking problems on an already-crowded block. One petition, written by neighbors Lila and Cris Crespin, dubbed the area “Alcohol Alley;” another petition, whose author remained a mystery, said the addition of Panini’s customers would make it almost impossible for residents to park in the area.

Hansen Kamci, the restaurant’s manager, said he doubted the new location would cause any trouble, especially since Panini emphasized dinner over drinks.

“It’s not going to disturb the neighbors or anything,” Kamci said.

The Planning Commission voted 6-1 to approve the move, but City Councilwoman Nancy Gardner appealed the decision due to residents’ concerns. In November, the City Council granted Panini’s owners a 60-day continuance to revise their plans for valet parking and other issues.

7Chriss Street

It’s been a tumultuous year for Chriss Street, the embattled county treasurer who has dodged efforts to strip him of his investment powers in 2007.

Whether facing a $7-million lawsuit alleging mismanagement of a Delaware truck trailer manufacturer, allegedly circumventing the bidding safeguards while carrying out $750,000 worth of office renovations, or surprising the supervisors with predictions of fiscal woe, Chriss Street managed to make several headlines this year.

Street’s one-time ally, County Supervisor John Moorlach, can’t scrounge up enough votes to strip Street of his investment authority, but the treasurer still faces local and federal investigations related to issues before he was elected.