Rose Recall Effort Runs Out of Time

A campaign to remove Councilman Eddie Rose from office has failed to gather enough signatures to place the issue on the ballot this fall.

Recall supporters had until Thursday to submit at least 6,102 signatures to City Clerk Juanita Zarilla, but the deadline passed without action, Zarilla said. More than 7,000 signatures likely would have been needed, she said, because some are typically disqualified.

“I think they found out just how tough it is to collect more than 7,000 signatures,” Zarilla said of recall organizers.

The leader of the campaign, Cheryl Alpert, could not be reached for comment.

Rose sparked an uproar in Laguna Niguel last fall when he sent a letter on city stationery to newspapers criticizing the O.J. Simpson verdict in language that some residents said had racist overtones.

Alpert handed Rose a recall notice at a special City Council meeting to discuss the letter.

Rose said Friday that the recall campaign’s failure “wasn’t surprising, considering that it never had public support.”

The controversy also spawned a second recall drive against Rose’s main opponent in City Hall, Councilman Mark Goodman. A group led by resident Jim Tarvin has until mid-April to submit its petitions and have at least 6,102 signatures verified.

Tarvin said Goodman embarrassed the city by calling a press conference to publicize the Rose situation.

Goodman said he called the press conference to answer the public furor over Rose’s letter and feels that neither recall attempt is justified.

“Recalls should be reserved for serious, serious misconduct,” he said. “A council member just doing something outrageous should be handled by the voters at the next general election.”