Westminster City Councilwoman Charged With Attempting to Bribe Parking Officer

Westminster City Councilwoman Amy Phan West is being charged with a misdemeanor for attempting to bribe parking enforcement officers to halt her husband’s car from getting towed, according to a quality merchandise from the county’s apical authoritative connected Thursday morning. 

Phan West denied the charges successful an interrogation with Voice of OC, saying it was the archetypal she’d heard astir it. 

“I person nary remark but for I ne'er talked to immoderate officer. I don’t adjacent cognize who the serviceman is,” Phan West said. “I ne'er talked to immoderate serviceman astir this.” 

According to Orange County District Attorney prosecutors, 2 parking power officers were sent to cheque connected an abandoned Jeep connected to a car rental concern Phan West was operating successful April 2023, 1 of 20 calls for work to the determination astir unregistered oregon abandoned vehicles, according to officials. 

Prosecutors allege that aft officers called a tow truck, Phan West came retired and asked them to stop. 

“Phan West is accused of identifying herself and telling the parking power officers not to tow the conveyance and she would determination it herself,” states the property merchandise from the DA’s office. “She is besides accused of telling the parking power officers however overmuch she loves the Westminster Police Department, that she is adjacent friends with the Westminster constabulary chief, and that she is successful the process of getting raises for constabulary section personnel.” 

At the time, metropolis assembly members were negotiating a caller declaration with the Westminster Police Officers’ Association, and the parking officials canceled the tow motortruck and near the abandoned Jeep connected the thoroughfare according to prosecutors. 

District Attorney Todd Spitzer pledged to guarantee she was held accountable successful a connection connected Thursday. 

“Holding elective bureau does not entitle anyone to a abstracted acceptable of rules and immoderate effort to prosecute successful corruption, bribery, oregon immoderate different transgression nether the shroud of elective bureau volition beryllium thoroughly investigated and immoderate and each crimes that person been committed volition beryllium prosecuted by my bureau to the fullest grade of the law,” Spitzer said. 

That prosecution comes arsenic Spitzer’s bureau is helping prosecute erstwhile OC Supervisor Andrew Do for bribery amidst different charges against a erstwhile Stanton City Council subordinate for illegally surviving extracurricular their territory and a artillery plea from a recently elected Tustin City Councilman. 

Phan West was narrowly elected successful 2022, winning the contention for Westminster’s archetypal territory by lone 21 votes. 

The prosecution besides comes arsenic her ain metropolis is suing her for disrupting metropolis assembly meetings, asking a justice to halt her from interrupting the discussion. 

Read: Westminster Asks a Judge to Help Rein successful Unruly City Council Meetings

That suit besides came aft her assembly colleagues censured her past August, laying retired implicit 30 antithetic charges including allegations regarding her behaviour including lying, disclosing confidential information, disparaging unit and publically berating residents.

[Read: Westminster City Council Censures Amy Phan West Over Laundry List of Allegations]

Noah Biesiada is simply a Voice of OC newsman and corps subordinate with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him astatine nbiesiada@voiceofoc.org.

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