SOUTH PASADENA : City Ordered to Pay Ex-Mayor’s Legal Fees
The city’s bill in its legal battle against former Mayor Lee D. Prentiss has risen to nearly $1.8 million after a judge ordered the city to pay attorney’s fees in the case.
Pasadena Superior Court Judge J. Michael Byrne last week ordered the city to pay $248,000 in legal fees accumulated by Prentiss in addition to an outstanding jury award of $1.2 million and more than $300,000 for its attorneys.
A jury awarded Prentiss the money in July after determining that city officials had violated Prentiss’ civil rights in 1990 by conspiring to revoke a building permit to expand his 86-year-old home.
South Pasadena officials say the city does not have insurance to cover civil rights claims and will be forced to use up funds earmarked for emergencies and new equipment to cover the mounting bill. The almost $1.5 million owed is nearly 19% of the city’s budget.
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