Jaramillo, Charged Again, Insists He’s Wrong Target

Returning to court Tuesday to face another round of corruption charges, former Assistant Sheriff George Jaramillo accused prosecutors of unfairly ratcheting up the case against him while sparing his former boss similar scrutiny.

Jaramillo lashed out at prosecutors moments after he was charged in a newly unsealed indictment with lying twice to a grand jury, using a department helicopter for personal travel, and ordering deputies to develop his film, research convalescent homes for his mother and attend a relative’s graduation ceremony.

Already facing bribery and other charges, Jaramillo pleaded not guilty in Orange County Superior Court to the new charges -- six felonies. He immediately called for a similar investigation into Carona’s use of department helicopters and other resources.

“What about Mike Carona?” Jaramillo asked reporters in what was his first news conference since the criminal case against him broke more than two years ago. “If what George Jaramillo did was wrong, why isn’t it wrong for Mike Carona to do it?”

Jaramillo and his attorney, Joseph G. Cavallo, said they had asked the state attorney general to take over the case, citing alliances between Carona and Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas. They also want the attorney general to determine who leaked the results of secret grand jury proceedings to the media before they were unsealed Tuesday.

Assistant Dist. Atty. Debora Lloyd, who attended Jaramillo’s press conference, said the evidence would “tell the story” of what Jaramillo did and that she was “not turning a blind eye to Carona.”

Lloyd, the lead prosecutor on the corruption case, said she had no political agenda and would pursue any allegations that Jaramillo or anyone else might have against the sheriff. She said her office was in constant contact with the attorney general about potential conflicts.

She said of the case: “I would have to say, not only is it strong, but we actually were very conservative in the charges against Mr. Jaramillo. Actually, we just picked the more egregious incidences.”

A sheriff’s spokesman declined to comment on Jaramillo’s accusations.

Jaramillo was already accused of taking bribes, obstruction of justice and conflict of interest related to his work as a paid consultant for CHG Technologies Inc., a Newport Beach company seeking to promote a laser device designed to stop cars fleeing from police.

Jaramillo now faces 11 felonies and two misdemeanors. If convicted on all charges, he could be sentenced to nearly 13 years in state prison.

The Orange County Grand Jury was impaneled last week after new witnesses contacted prosecutors with additional information about Jaramillo’s misuse of public resources, according to a statement by the district attorney’s office.

The grand jury heard from 29 witnesses, including Carona, his spokesman Jon Fleischman, former Assistant Sheriff Pete Gannon and members of the sheriff’s Dignitary Protection Unit, a group of sworn officers used to provide security for visiting diplomats.

The indictment says Jaramillo perjured himself twice in April 2004 while testifying before a grand jury investigating his relationship with CHG. Jaramillo testified that his wife, Lisa, had been paid $10,000 as an administrative assistant for the company when he knew it was not true, the indictment says. He also dishonestly testified that he had scrupulously followed the written advice of county counsel in preparing his consulting contract with CHG, the indictment says.

Jaramillo also is accused of directing on-duty deputies to research and visit convalescent homes for his mother, to get his personal photos developed, and to assist him at a ceremony when his brother graduated from Chapman University Law School in 2003.

He is also charged with using county resources to facilitate his personal travel, including using a sheriff’s helicopter so that his wife could retrieve her purse and wallet from their southern Orange County home before attending a White House function.

Jaramillo, who maintains that all the charges are baseless, said prosecutors had yet to investigate Carona’s connections to CHG owner Charles H. Gabbard. Gabbard, who has acknowledged he funneled at least $29,000 to Carona’s campaign through an illegal stock swap, was granted full immunity in exchange for his testimony against Jaramillo.

During his news conference, Jaramillo said the sheriff should be investigated for whether he took a longtime mistress, whom he did not name, on unauthorized helicopter rides and used the Dignitary Protection Unit for his own political and personal business.

In 2004, The Times reported that Carona used members of the unit to protect him at political, social and other events and that he was the only Southern California sheriff who traveled with such an entourage. At the time, some deputies suggested the real purpose was to make the sheriff look important; sheriff’s officials said Carona used such bodyguards only when protection was warranted.

“What about him taking numerous people, to create an entourage, to political events and concerts and clearing out front rows and arresting people when they badmouth a member of his family?” Jaramillo asked. “What about these things? Why aren’t they worthy of investigation?”