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Thursday, October 09-October 15, 2025
VOL. 13,
LACo supervisors want probe of alleged fraud in $4B sex abuse settlement
Ex-LA deputy mayor who reported fake bomb threat gets probation
By City News Service
By City News Service
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Supervisor Kathryn Barger. | Photo courtesy of Supervisor Kathryn Barger’s Office
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NO. 244
he county Board of Supervisors Tuesday directed its attorneys to investigate allegations that some people included in a landmark $4 billion settlement of sex abuse claims against county workers were paid to file lawsuits and become plaintiffs in the litigation. "Fraudulent claims do a grave disservice to survivors of childhood sexual abuse and to taxpayers," Supervisor Kathryn Barger said in a statement after the unanimous board vote. "This motion ensures we are protecting both by holding bad actors accountable while maintaining the integrity of a process designed to deliver justice and healing." The investigation follows a Los Angeles Times report earlier this month that some plaintiffs in the sweeping sex abuse settlement were paid by vendors
to sue the county, and in at least two cases, fabricate claims so they could become plaintiffs. According to The Times, the plaintiffs in question were all represented by Downtown LA Law Group, or DTLA, which had more than 2,700 cases involved in the abuse settlement. The law firm categorically denied paying anyone to sue, saying no representatives of the firm were ever authorized to offer people money. The firm told The Times it has hired an outside company to investigate if any false claims were made. "The allegations in this story are extremely concerning and describe conduct that is contrary to our firm's values," the firm told The Times in a statement. "While we do not believe they are accurate, we are taking them seriously." According to The Times,
its investigation found seven plaintiffs who said they were paid by "recruiters" for a law firm to become involved in litigation against the county. Several board members said during Tuesday's meeting they were highly disturbed by The Times' report, noting that the $4 billion settlement was designed to provide justice for legitimate abuse victims. Supervisor Lindsey Horvath said the settlement money "must truly reach those were harmed," not people "looking to profit from someone else's suffering." Supervisor Hilda Solis said the report of alleged fraud "really upset me." "I can't stand for fraud and criminality," Solis said. Barger's motion calls on county attorneys to investigate the allegations of misconduct in sex-abuse claims filed against the county under AB 218, the state legislation that extended the statute of
limitations for childhood sex abuse allegations. Attorneys were also directed to explore the possibility of referring misconduct allegations to the California State Bar, while outlining ways of boosting oversight of abuse settlement agreements and establishing a hotline for people to report unethical or fraudulent behavior. Attorneys were instructed to report back to the board within 14 days with updates on the claims review process and the implementation of establishing the fraud hotline. The $4 billion settlement approved earlier this year involves roughly 11,000 plaintiffs, and its cost has already forced curtailments in spending, with many county departments facing 3% budget cuts during the current fiscal year, along with reductions in some county services.
former Los Angeles deputy mayor who admitted reporting a fake bomb threat to City Hall last year was sentenced Monday to community service and fined $5,000. Brian K. Williams, 61, of Pasadena, was ordered to complete 50 hours of community work and to pay the fine during a year of federal probation, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. He pleaded guilty in June in downtown Los Angeles to a single federal count of making "threats regarding fire and explosives." According to Williams' plea agreement, on Oct. 3, 2024, while serving as Mayor Karen Bass' deputy mayor of public safety, he called the Los Angeles Police Department's chief of staff, falsely claiming he had just received a bomb threat to City Hall on his city-issued phone from an unknown man. About 10 minutes later, Williams sent a text message to Bass and several high-ranking city officials and falsely reported, "Bomb threat: I received phone call on my city cell at 10:48 am this morning. The male caller stated that 'he was tired of the city support of Israel, and he has decided to place a bomb in City Hall. It might be in the rotunda.' I immediately contacted the chief of staff of LAPD, they are going to send a number of officers over to do a search of the building and to determine if anyone else received a threat." See Deputy mayor Page 14
Williams admitted he then sent additional text messages to Bass and other city officials stating, "At this time, there is no need for us to evacuate the building, I'm meeting with the threat management officers within the next 10 minutes. In light of the Jewish holidays, we are taking this (threat) a little more seriously. I will keep you posted." LAPD officers responded to City Hall to investigate the threat Williams reported. Police searched the building and did not locate any suspicious packages or devices. Williams described to police the threatening call he claimed to have received, showed them the record of an incoming call that appeared as a blocked number on his city-issued phone and said it was the unknown man who conveyed the threat, court papers show. In fact, that incoming call record was the call Williams had placed to himself on his personal cell, federal prosecutors said. At no time did Williams intend to carry out the threat, his plea agreement filed in Los Angeles federal court states. Williams quietly retired from city government in April and prior to that, when the FBI began an investigation into the bomb threat, he was placed on administrative leave. Williams joined Bass' office in March 2023. He was tasked with working closely with critical safety departments such as police, fire,