Galanter Plans to Be on Hand for Swearing In

Although still hospitalized Friday, Los Angeles City Councilwoman-elect Ruth Galanter will be at City Hall next week to be sworn into office, her top aide has pledged.

Galanter, who is at UCLA Medical Center for treatment of injuries from a brutal knife attack in May, will be released in time to assume office on Wednesday, said Marcella Howell, her chief deputy.

“Ruth has told me she’ll be there to be sworn in,” Howell said. “She’s ready to leave, she’s getting antsy. She told me that the doctors have agreed that she will be released in time, and once she leaves she’s not going to be readmitted.”

Exactly when Galanter will be released, Howell said, is a “day-to-day thing” to be assessed by the doctors.

Outpatient Care

Howell said Galanter will continue to receive medical care as an outpatient. The councilwoman-elect “will have an abbreviated schedule, she’ll have to build up her strength.” But Galanter “will attend all council meetings, all committee meetings,” Howell added.

Galanter, stabbed twice in the neck by an intruder in her Venice home in early May, still has some difficulty digesting heavy food, Howell said. “She’s not eating steak, but she is eating better,” Howell said. Galanter’s voice is “still hoarse but it no longer hurts her to talk or swallow,” she said.

The hospital Friday continued to list Galanter’s condition as good. Councilman Marvin Braude, who saw Galanter on Sunday, said she visited with friends on the hospital patio. Her spirits are high, he said, although her voice is “at a whisper and she does become fatigued after awhile. She said she’s eager to get going.”

Galanter defeated longtime council member and current council President Pat Russell on June 2 in a runoff election in the coastal 6th District.