COSTA MESA : Gadfly Jailed for Violating City Codes

Sid Soffer went to jail Thursday, and for the irrepressible Costa Mesa gadfly, it means no butting heads with city officials, attending City Council meetings or poring over documents in search of the missing link.

In a scathing exchange, Municipal Judge Susanne S. Shaw in Newport Beach sentenced Soffer, who has spent thousands of hours in a personal quest to slay civic dragons, to 30 days in jail for a spat with Costa Mesa officials over his rental property.

Despite pleas from his attorney for leniency, the 60-year-old businessman--considered a hero by some residents for his fights with City Hall but a slumlord by others--was handcuffed and taken into custody. The battle was over, Shaw told him.

“He is not going to get work furlough, electronic surveillance or early release,” said Shaw, who has presided over much of the legal wrestling between Soffer and the city. “Mr. Soffer has to realize that compliance doesn’t mean defiance. He needs to see the inside of a jail.”

With that goodby, Soffer became the first person in Costa Mesa and quite possibly all of Orange County to be sent to jail for failing to get proper building permits.

Soffer’s attorney, Richard Schwartzberg, thwarted in his attempts to keep his client out of County Jail, accused the judge of having a personal vendetta against Soffer. Schwartzberg is appealing the sentence.

“The only reason I see the court doing this is the court’s own personal feelings,” Schwartzberg said. “All I have heard from the court . . . is you are ticked off.”

Soffer’s latest troubles with the city began in 1990, when he was convicted on seven counts of misdemeanor building code violations.

He was charged with not having permits to convert the garage and upstairs playroom of his rental property into apartments, among other allegations.

Since then, the court has ordered him several times to bring the property up to code, even putting Soffer on probation and fining him in the process.

Through it all, he has steadfastly fought, appealed and argued to try and beat the rap. He maintains, among other things, that he bought the property after the work had been done and tried to comply but didn’t get cooperation from the city.

“I wasn’t looking to hurt anyone. I surely shouldn’t be held criminally responsible,” Soffer said in a recent interview. “The city says I did the construction without a permit. I never did the construction.”

For Soffer, the jail sentence came as no surprise. It was just another mark on his longstanding rap sheet with the city that spans almost 15 years.

He is a regular fixture at every city meeting, in his trademark white T-shirt and matching beard.

In fact, he is credited with helping shape some policy decisions. A rule to send out public notices more than 10 days in advance has his stamp on it.

It also isn’t the first time he has sparred with Costa Mesa in court. The previous round was over antique cars he parked in his front yard.

In spite of it all, Soffer is liked by those he does battle with and even respected for standing up for what he believes in, although his tactics are often criticized.

He has a reputation as a man who tests limits. This time he just went too far, city officials said.

“We can’t make a separate set of conditions for Sid,” said Mayor Mary Hornbuckle, who has often been the butt of his comments. “It isn’t that we haven’t given him time or the chance.”

Not everyone will miss Soffer during the next 30 days. A sigh of relief could be heard echoing through City Hall--from the Planning Department and city attorney’s office to the Council Chambers.

“It will be the first time I missed two (council) meetings in a row in probably 10 years,” Soffer said before he was sentenced. “When I get back they are going to know it. I will have to play catch-up.”