L.A. City Councilman Arraigned
(Los Angeles, CA) — Los Angeles City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas is being indicted and arraigned on federal bribery and conspiracy charges. Ridley-Thomas pleaded not guilty in a virtual hearing Wednesday. He was there to answer to the alleged charges that he traded votes for help by a dean at the University of Southern California. At the time in question, Ridley-Thomas was a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. Federal prosecutors say the councilman and a USC dean let a family member into the school in order to secure county contracts. Both defendants deny the allegations. Earlier Wednesday, the L.A. city council voted eleven-to-three to immediately suspend Ridley-Thomas from the council. MRT was released on 50-thousand dollars bond. The trial is set to begin December 14th.
(Los Angeles, CA) — Los Angeles City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas is now suspended from his elected position as he faces federal charges. A divided L.A. City Council voted eleven to three to take the veteran politician out of office for now. He’s facing bribery charges related to allegations that he traded votes for help by a USC dean. The feds say it happened when he was on the L.A. County Board of Supervisors. They say the councilman and a USC dean let a family member into the school to help land county contracts. Both defendants deny the allegations.