Suit against West Covina dismissed

West Covina resident John Scheuplein's lawsuit against four members of the City Council was dismissed yesterday.

Scheuplein says his attorneys are asking the judge to reconsider, and that he's willing to appeal if he has to. City Attorney Arnold Alvarez-Glasman called the ruling a vindication and “a huge win.” The tentative written ruling explained that Judge Dan Oki was dismissing the complaint in part because Scheuplein filed it for his own interests, not for the general public, which Scheuplein denies. Tangentially, the ruling also found that “it appears that ... some actions taken by the City Council have been in the interest of some political contributors,” but that those actions were “not necessarily” illegal.

This has all been a big deal in West Covina because Scheuplein filed his suit right about the time that a similar lawsuit against the city by prominent local developer Ziad Alhassen was dismissed. Alhassen has been at odds with a majority of the council since about 2004. The city has been trying to show that Scheuplein was suing on Alhassen's behalf, and Scheuplein has argued that his case is much broader.

More on this in tomorrow's paper...