Email Author Gene Maddaus

Awards

• 2012 - Best of the West/First Amendment Funding, Inc., published September 15, 2011

  "Secrets & Lies"

• 2011 - Southern California Journalism Awards/LA Press Club, published December 2, 2010

  "L.A.'s Light Rail Fiasco"

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2011 Stories by Gene Maddaus

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  FEATURED STORY

  L.A. County Approves Status Quo Redistricting Plan -- Denying Second Latino Seat

  published Sep 27, 2011

  After hearing six hours of testimony, the L.A. County Board of Supervisors voted today to approve a status-quo redistricting map, denying Latino activists' quest for a second Latino seat.The vote hing... More >>

• Eric Garcetti Backs Second Latino Supervisor's Seat, Drawing Contrast With Zev Yaroslavsky

  published Sep 27, 2011

  The L.A. County Board of Supervisors will be fighting over redistricting all day today. About 850 people have signed up to speak, and it's already gotten heated.One of the speakers was Councilman Eric... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Ezri Namvar, The "Bernie Madoff of Beverly Hills," Faces Up To 10 Years In Prison

  published Sep 26, 2011

  Ezri Namvar, the so-called "Madoff of Beverly Hills," could face a decade in prison at his sentencing next month.Namvar, 60, was a prominent banker and real estate investor in L.A.'s Iranian Jewish co... More >>

• Major League Baseball Asks Court To Force Frank McCourt To Sell The Dodgers

  published Sep 23, 2011

  This is a big day in the history of the L.A. Dodgers. Major League Baseball has asked a bankruptcy judge to order that the team be sold at auction.This is not a surprise, but it is quite something to ... More >>

• Sen. Dianne Feinstein Sues Kinde Durkee, Alleges Massive Theft, Accuses First California Bank of Cover-Up

  published Sep 23, 2011

  Sen. Dianne Feinstein filed a lawsuit today against Kinde Durkee, alleging that the disgraced treasurer took millions from her campaign accounts.Feinstein also sued First California Bank, alleging tha... More >>

• Tony Cardenas Is Headed To Congress: Howard Berman Endorsement Clears Last Roadblock

  published Sep 23, 2011

  Looks like Councilman Tony Cardenas can start looking for apartments in Washington, D.C.Today, he got the endorsement of Rep. Howard Berman in his race for the new "Latino" Congressional seat in the S... More >>

• L.A. County Redistricting Without Maps: Do People Vote Based On Racer

  published Sep 23, 2011

  The L.A. County redistricting battle will come to its dramatic conclusion next Tuesday. In two previous posts, we've tried to explain the demographics and the politics of the issue with the help of so... More >>

• Kinde Durkee Scandal: Sen. Dianne Feinstein Warns Off Opponents With $5 Million Check

  published Sep 21, 2011

  Sen. Dianne Feinstein is digging into her own pocket to warn off potential opponents who might think she's vulnerable because of the Kinde Durkee campaign finance scandal.Feinstein intends to write he... More >>

• The Politics of The L.A. County Redistricting Fight Explained -- With Venn Diagrams!

  published Sep 20, 2011

  The L.A. County Board of Supervisors is just a week away from its big vote on redistricting.Last week, we used pie charts to illustrate the underlying demographic reality of the issue, which is that w... More >>

• Frank McCourt Asks Bankruptcy Court To Approve $750/Hour Public Relations Contract

  published Sep 16, 2011

  First the good news: Dodger owner Frank McCourt is aware that you hate his guts.Now the bad news: He thinks he can change your mind.Howr He wants to hire a PR firm -- at $750 per hour -- to improve hi... More >>

• When Will Dodger Divorce Case Endr Wait Till Next Year.

  published Sep 14, 2011

  If you're a Dodger fan, September is when you start to say, "Wait till next year." Not for the Dodgers to win the pennant, but for the McCourt divorce case to finally end.It certainly won't happen thi... More >>

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  COVER STORY

  Glen Hartford's Hollywood Dream and How It Came to Ruin

  published September 15, 2011

  Glen Hartford returned from the Cannes Film Festival two years ago with soaring hopes. His boxing movie was due out in a few months, and he was... More >>

• The L.A. County Redistricting Battle Explained -- Without Maps!

  published Sep 14, 2011

  The redistricting battle at the L.A. County Board of Supervisors is the ultimate arcane, inside-baseball political fight. From a distance, all you can see is a bunch of people squabbling over some map... More >>

• Kinde Durkee Called "The Bernie Madoff Of Campaign Finance Treasurers"

  published Sep 12, 2011

  Update: Sen. Dianne Feinstein says she was "wiped out." More below.Another day, another victim of the Kinde Durkee campaign finance scandal.Rep. Susan Davis, a San Diego Democrat and a Durkee client, ... More >>

• L.A. Democratic Party Lost More Than $200,000 In Kinde Durkee Campaign Finance Scandal

  published Sep 09, 2011

  Update, 5:18 p.m.: Durkee to be released tonight. See below.The L.A. County Democratic Party confirmed today that it has been victimized in the still-unfolding scandal surrounding campaign treasurer K... More >>

• Kinde Durkee, Democratic Treasurer Accused Of Pocketing Campaign Funds, Did Not Have Liability Insurance

  published Sep 08, 2011

  Democratic operatives are still trying to assess the financial damage left by Kinde Durkee -- the campaign treasurer who is accused of taking campaign funds for her personal use.The FBI alleges she to... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Eric Garcetti Makes It Official: He's Running For Mayor

  published Sep 08, 2011

  Update 3:14 p.m.: Zev Yaroslavsky will jump in "sooner rather than later."Councilman Eric Garcetti announced this morning that he's running for mayor.Garcetti's entry into the race has been expected f... More >>

• Bill Burke, The "Lead Investor" In China-Backed Bid For Dodgers, Is Even Poorer Than We Thought

  published Sep 08, 2011

  Remember Bill Burke, the guy who offered to buy the Dodgers last week with $1.2 billion of China's moneyr Something about that didn't smell quite right, so last week we tracked down his wife's financi... More >>

• Portantino's Passion Ploy

  published September 8, 2011

  It's been a rough summer for Assembly Speaker John Pérez. His top legislative priority, a bill to eliminate the city of Vernon, died in... More >>

• Treasurer Kinde Durkee Accused Of Using Campaign Funds To Pay For Cosmetics, Mortgages, Mom's Nursing Home

  published Sep 06, 2011

  Update: 6:30 p.m.: Sen. Ted Lieu "astounded" by the scale of the alleged crime. Earlier: Durkee appears in court. The L.A. County Democratic Party may also have been victimized. More below. The l... More >>

• Bill Burke Can't Afford To Buy The L.A. Dodgers

  published Sep 02, 2011

  Bill Burke made a big splash on Thursday with news of his $1.2 billion bid to buy the Dodgers. Wow! $1.2 billion! Whoever this Burke guy is, he must have a lot of money, rightrBurke was characterized ... More >>

• Frank McCourt vs. China: Who's A Worse Dodger Ownerr

  published Sep 02, 2011

  Harold Meyerson has a provocative column in which he argues that China would be a worse owner for the Dodgers than Frank McCourt.Is that truerLet's do a point-by-point comparison...rChina 5, McCourt 2... More >>

• Should China Buy The Dodgersr

  published Sep 01, 2011

  In the 1970s, the Chinese government issued a pamphlet declaring that baseball would "help build the (Communist) party" by promoting "the diligent study of Marxism, Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought."Si... More >>

• Democrats In Search Of A Candidate In Assembly Battleground; Is Betsy Butler The Answerr

  published Sep 01, 2011

  Democrats are trying to piece together the statewide electoral jigsaw puzzle in an effort to win two-thirds majorities in the Assembly and the state Senate.To get there, they'll have to win the battle... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Speaker John Perez Loses Battle To Wipe Vernon Off the Map

  published Aug 29, 2011

  Assembly Speaker John Perez lost his bid to eliminate the City of Vernon today, as the state Senate rejected his proposal on a vote of 13-17.It's a high-profile defeat for Perez, who was once so conf... More >>