Mayor Exonerated for Unauthorized Trip
An investigation by the district attorney’s office into possible misuse of travel expense accounts by Azusa city councilmen has cleared Mayor Eugene Moses of any criminal conduct in an unauthorized side trip he took while en route to a San Francisco meeting last year.
The investigation was requested by the City Council after the August, 1988, League of California Cities convention, attended by Moses and three other council members. Moses was accused of wrongdoing by council members Harry Stemrich and Tony Naranjo when he showed up late at the convention after spending a night in Lee Vining, 270 miles east of San Francisco.
On the trip, Moses and a companion hung campaign posters for Eugene Osko, an unsuccessful state Senate candidate. The mayor spent $47.70 for a hotel, billing the city for the amount. Moses later said the stopover was necessary after his car broke down.
Moses leveled his own charges of improper expenditures, saying other council members had stayed in a San Francisco hotel that was twice as expensive as the one in Lee Vining.
Last week, Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner wrote a memo to Azusa City Atty. Peter Thorson stating that no criminal conduct occurred.
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