St. John Invokes 5th at Bankruptcy Hearing

Juanita St. John, the business partner of Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley charged with stealing $180,000 from a city-funded African trade task force, invoked the 5th Amendment nearly 100 times Thursday during a federal bankruptcy hearing on her personal finances.

St. John, in sometimes defiant tones, refused to answer most questions about the task force and her personal assets during 45 minutes of grilling by lawyers representing the city attorney’s office and a federally appointed bankruptcy trustee.

The hearing was a routine part of a bankruptcy proceeding the 58-year-old San Marino resident initiated two years ago. But it took on added significance because of the recent legal actions against St. John.

The district attorney’s office earlier this month charged St. John with grand theft in connection with her activities as executive director of the Task Force for Africa/Los Angeles Relations, a pet project of Bradley’s.

St. John refused to answer questions because of the pending criminal case, her attorney said. The city attorney’s office also has sued St. John and the task force to recover nearly $400,000 that was allegedly misappropriated.

St. John, who is free on bail, has maintained that the city funds were properly spent. But she has refused to provide a full accounting of the money. Last October, she invoked the 5th Amendment more than 60 times when subpoenaed by the City Council.

On Thursday, St. John occasionally responded and became argumentative with her questioners, despite repeated advice by her attorneys to make no comment. “Are you here to please the press?” she asked attorney John Reitman, who questioned her on behalf of bankruptcy trustee Ronald Durkin.

St. John testified that a declaration she filed two years ago claiming assets of $970,000--mostly her home--and liabilities of about $553,000 was accurate. St. John filed bankruptcy when creditors were foreclosing on her home.