Orange County in Bankruptcy : Pleas Spark Anger and Sympathy : Reaction: Shock and disappointment are felt following Citron’s admissions, which confirm some officials’ worst fears.

Robert L. Citron’s guilty pleas to six felony counts in connection with the collapsed county investment pool were met with both sympathy and anger Thursday from elected officials, financial experts and activists.

But almost all those interviewed said the day’s fast-moving developments left them stunned and saddened.

“I don’t have the words to describe it,” said Stan Oftelie, executive director of the Orange County Transportation Authority. “It was staggering the level of fraud that was going on. . . . It’s an extraordinary disappointment.”

For Oftelie and others, the former treasurer-tax collector’s admission that he misappropriated public funds, falsified documents and misled pool investors confirmed their worst fears about the roots of the county’s financial crisis.

Citron has been the subject of much public anger in the nearly five months since he was forced to resign as county treasurer after the losses from the investment pool were made public. Some officials said Thursday that Citron’s guilty pleas might begin “a time of healing” for the people and agencies involved in the bankruptcy.

“I think it helps to start to turn the corner on closure,” said state Sen. John R. Lewis (R-Orange). “A lot of people felt very frustrated. A lot of people suspected there was illegality involved, and now those suspicions have been confirmed.”

But others said it will take more that Citron’s admissions to calm public anger about the bankruptcy.

“People feel that a crime has been committed,” said Carole Walters, president of the Orange Taxpayers Assn. “Even if he pleads guilty, the people aren’t happy. He’s not the only one responsible.”

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For officials from agencies that invested in the pool, Citron’s guilty pleas reinforced the belief that the county misled them about the riskiness of the fund.

“The county lied to us and misled us. I’m glad he acknowledged that,” said Irvine Councilwoman Paula Werner. “This helps spell out to the public even more clearly the county’s culpable role in this.”

Some officials and financial experts expressed some sympathy for Citron. They noted that he did not commit crimes for personal gain and that years of successful investing made him feel immune to financial market fluctuations.

“The whole thing is tragic,” said Stephen Ward, chief investment officer for Charles Schwab, which owns some Orange County notes. “He didn’t benefit personally, except for the glory he seemed to get for having things go right for so long.”

Assemblyman Mickey Conroy (R-Orange) agreed, adding that Citron “would not or could not accept the fact that the county’s portfolio was in critical danger.”

“Actually, I feel sorrow for him,” Conroy added. “I think he was in a state of total denial.”

Linda Miller, a neighbor of Citron, said today’s developments were “very sad. They are fine people and wonderful neighbors. I just feel very bad about what is happening.”

Supervisor William G. Steiner said Citron’s fall shows “what pride and ego can lead to.”

“I don’t take much pleasure in anyone else’s fall,” Steiner said. “But there had to be some accountability for the actions that brought Orange County to its knees.”

Times staff writers Debora Vrana, Lisa Richardson and Eric Bailey and correspondent Alan Eyerly contributed to this report.

Contributing to today’s coverage of former County Treasurer-Tax Collector Robert L. Citron’s guilty pleas were staff writers Eric Bailey, Anna Cekola, Ken Ellingwood, Matt Lait, Mark Platte, H.G. Reza, Lisa Richardson, Diane Seo, Debora Vrana, Michael G. Wagner, Peter M. Warren, Jodi Wilgoren, Chris Woodyard and correspondents Shelby Grad and Steve Scheibal. Also contributing were photographers Robert Lachman, Al Schaben, Geraldine Wilkins, Don Bartletti and Craig Wallace Chapman and researcher April Jackson.