Woolard Case Casts Cloud on Campaign Donation

Assemblyman Tom McClintock said Tuesday that he has notified federal officials that Moorpark’s mayor may have illegally contributed to one of his campaigns by funneling money through a former Moorpark councilman.

McClintock (R-Thousand Oaks) said he will return the $500 he received in 1985 from the former councilman, Danny Woolard, if Woolard stands by his allegation that the money came from Mayor Thomas C. (Bud) Ferguson.

“It’s my opinion that there may be a violation of federal elections law if Woolard were acting as an intermediary for another person,” McClintock, who represents eastern Ventura County, said in a telephone interview.

McClintock said his campaign manager, at his request, on Tuesday alerted the Federal Elections Commission in Washington to the situation.

Entered Guilty Plea

The legislator’s action is the latest fallout from a series of allegations made by Woolard after his guilty plea last week in federal court to embezzling $5,500 from the post office where he worked. Woolard faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine at sentencing Feb. 23.

In another development Tuesday, Woolard said he has been granted immunity from prosecution by the Ventura County district attorney’s office in exchange for sworn testimony on his allegations of vote-buying and other political corruption in Moorpark. Woolard, who resigned from the council after his plea, said he spent most of the day giving sworn testimony to district attorney’s investigators.

Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury would not confirm the granting of immunity to Woolard but said his office is investigating “allegations of public corruption and official misconduct” among Moorpark city officials.

Campaign for Congress

Woolard said Tuesday that Ferguson gave him $500 to contribute to McClintock in late 1985. At that time, McClintock was conducting an “exploratory campaign” for the 21st Congressional District seat being vacated by Bobbie Fiedler and now held by Elton Gallegly.

Ferguson “said he wanted me to get to know the right people,” Woolard said.

Ferguson, who could not be reached for comment, said through his attorney Tuesday that he would answer Woolard’s allegations at a press conference today.

Fred Eiland, a spokesman for the Federal Elections Commission, said it is against federal election laws to contribute money to a federal campaign “in the name of another person.”

Ferguson had already contributed $1,000 to McClintock’s campaign when Woolard made his contribution and was prohibited by federal campaign spending limits from giving any more money, according to McClintock’s campaign manager, Sue Martin. Under the law, individuals can contribute no more than $1,000 to a campaign.

Activities in Spotlight

“If Ferguson gave Woolard $500 to give to us, then he was contributing $1,500, which is illegal,” Martin said.

In disclosing that county prosecutors also are scrutinizing political activities in Moorpark, Bradbury said, “We are announcing our investigation to save people the trouble of writing letters and demanding that we conduct an investigation . . . . But it doesn’t mean that a conclusion to the case is imminent.”

The district attorney’s announcement follows allegations made by Woolard last week that Ferguson had loaned him as much as $30,000 in cash the last two years in an attempt to influence his vote on the five-member council. Woolard has not said which votes were affected by the loans.

Ferguson, who acknowledged last week that he loaned Woolard about $10,000 since 1985, has called the vote-influence allegation “a damn lie.” The mayor said he was trying to help his colleague pay off gambling debts.

Woolard said he actually used some of the money in a botched attempt to cover up his post office thefts, which were discovered by postal inspectors last fall. Woolard said he used some of the cash, which he never repaid, to replace stamps missing from the Moorpark Post Office, where he had worked as a window clerk.

Ferguson also acknowledged last week that he arranged for Woolard to borrow $2,500 from Stephen R. Anderson, president of A-C Construction in Moorpark, a firm that had business before City Council.

State Fair Political Practices Commission spokeswoman Lynn Montgomery said Tuesday that the loan arrangement had the “potential for a conflict of interest.” But she would not say whether the commission is investigating.

Follows Another Allegation

The commission already is looking into another conflict-of-interest allegation in Moorpark.

Councilman John Galloway said he filed a complaint with the commission last fall alleging that former Councilwoman Leta Yancy-Sutton voted on housing projects in which her husband, a construction estimator, had a financial stake. Yancy-Sutton has denied the allegation.

Montgomery confirmed that the commission is investigating the complaint of Galloway, who was elected to council in November, when Yancy-Sutton was was defeated in a bid for re-election.