Lynwood : Citizens Group Seeks to Recall Councilman Byrd

First-term City Councilman Louis Byrd has been targeted for recall by a group of residents who say they have been unhappy with his performance since he was elected in November, 1991.

Byrd appeared surprised and agitated Tuesday night when he was handed a copy of a recall petition from organizer Scott Johanson. Among the four reasons given for Boyd’s proposed ouster were incompetence and excessive spending of public funds, including the approval of a $30,000 personal loan to former city manager Michael Heriot last year. Heriot paid back the loan, officials said.

Byrd was also chastised for supporting the Entrepreneurial Development Academy of California, a nonprofit agency set up and funded by the city to provide free business training to area residents. The academy recently came under scrutiny for alleged mismanagement of city finds.

At the end of the meeting, Byrd lashed out at the recall proponents and called their allegations false. “I have no hidden agenda,” he said. “I was elected to make a difference, and I plan to continue to do that.”

Johanson, 23, said later that Byrd was singled out for recall because he “is just not a smart politician, and that’s what we need here.”

Johanson said his group, Concerned Citizens of Lynwood, has already collected 1,400 of the 2,500 needed to qualify the recall for a special election. Byrd has 10 days to respond to allegations in the recall petition, city officials said.

Mayor Paul H. Richards II made light of the recall effort, reminding Byrd that the other four council members have been targeted for recall at various times. “It’s all part of the process,” Richards told his colleague. “If you’re not under attack, you’re not doing your job.”

None of the previous recall attempts has resulted in an election, Assistant City Clerk Rita Manibusan said.