DA Accuses Supervisor Spitzer of Impersonating a Prosecutor

By PAUL ANDERSON

SANTA ANA, CA - An ongoing feud between Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and County Supervisor Todd Spitzer took another turn today when Rackauckas accused the supervisor of impersonating an assistant district attorney in a weekend robocall.

Rackauckas called an afternoon news conference to "discuss the recent impersonation of an OCDA assistant district attorney by an Orange County elected official while engaging in a political campaign."

A message left with Spitzer was not immediately returned.

Last week, Spitzer seized on an Orange County grand jury report to blast the district attorney's ethics.

The grand jury's most biting criticism related to the Public Guardian's Office, but it was also critical of the Public Administrator's Office, which has been run by Rackauckas since the county separated the agencies.

The public administrator handles the estates of those who die without a will. The public guardian cares for the elderly or ill who have no one else to help them.

The feud between the two public officials stems from Rackauckas' firing of Spitzer in 2010 when Spitzer intervened in a case involving then-Public Administrator-Guardian John Williams.

Spitzer had called Williams' office about a woman in a check-kiting investigation who he said may have been a victim of domestic violence and should not be prosecuted.

Rackauckas accused Spitzer of using his job as a prosecutor to intimidate Williams' employees and cited that as one reason he fired him.

Spitzer went on to be elected to the Board of Supervisors and is often mentioned as a candidate for Rackauckas' job in the future.

Spitzer said he was fired for blowing the whistle on the "incompetence" of Williams and Rackauckas' wife, Peggi Buff, in the Public Administrator-Guardian Office.

City News Service