In the blink of an eye, the first year went by for Los Angeles City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto, who in an interview with The opinionwe found out that she was born in Puerto Rico, and is the first Latina to hold that position, and the first Latina elected to an elected position in the city of Los Angeles, other than to be a council member.
Quietly without making much noise, the City lawyer has had many achievements, but without a doubt the most relevant has been her fight against the sexual trafficking of minors on Figueroa Street.
What draws the most attention from Prosecutor Feldstein Soto’s campaign are the ‘Dear John’ letters, which are sent home to drivers who are caught red-handed, through the city’s video cameras, uploading to minors to their cars on Figueroa.
I don’t want to imagine the shock these individuals must have when they receive the letter in their homes, much less if it falls into the hands of the wife.
Another of Prosecutor Feldstein Soto’s actions that is worth highlighting is her intention to dispute the lawsuits that the city receives against her every year, a practice that leaves many lawyers making a very good living, at the expense of taxpayers. .
Due to lack of money
The California Bar was forced to close the People’s College of Law School in Los Angeles, from which Latino figures such as former mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former senator and former councilman Gil Cedillo, the Senator María Elena Durazo, retired judge Teresa Sánchez Gordón, Judge Pete Navarro, former CARECEN director Angela Sanbrano, Carlos Holguin, co-director with lawyer Peter Schey of the Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law Law), as well as the lawyer Andrés Bustamante, just to mention a few renowned ones.
From the graduates, we can deduce that the school was very good. Among the founders were very progressive lawyers such as Mario Fernando Vázquez, Henry “Hank” Di Suvero and Peter Schey
Everything indicates that the cause of the closure of this school that lived its glory days is due to the lack of financial resources to resolve the violations in the delivery of legal education that the school provided. And it seems that he had fallen into such a rut that he only had seven students left.
In the agreement reached, it was possible to give the two students who will finish their studies in May the opportunity to complete their exam at the Bar.
One of those students is Anabella Bastidas, who was director of the Council of Mexican Federations (COFEM), and who currently works for CHIRLA. So very soon Habemus lawyer Anabella! And it will be her turn to turn off the lights of a school that contributed a lot to Los Angeles.
It comes with everything
As soon as January begins, the electoral campaigns leading up to the March primaries will come with everything, including low blows. We must not lose sight of three elections in which there are Latinos involved.
One of the most contested districts will be 14, in which Kevin de León seeks re-election for four years on the Council. Seven candidates intend to unseat him, in addition to assembly members Wendy Carrillo and Miguel Santiago, including professor Eduardo Vargas, community activist Genny Guerrero, Nadine Díaz and lawyers Teresa Hillery and Ysabel Jurado.
Another race that will be super interesting to follow is the one that will be fought in District 10, where the current designated councilor Heather Hutt, inheritance of Herb Wesson, political enemy of Mark Riddley Thomas, will seek to be elected to office. Heather’s rivals are Pastor Eddie Anderson, former Assemblyman Reggie Jones-Sawyer, attorney Grace Yoo, and Afro-Latina City Commissioner Aura Vasquez.
In District 6, newcomer Councilwoman Imelda Padilla faces Real Estate agent Ely de la Cruz and respiratory care professional Carmelina Minasova.
Let’s not lose track of these three municipal elections in 2024.
For now, Merry Christmas!