Judge to Be New Mayor in Inglewood

In election returns Tuesday, a judge renowned for keeping order in the court appeared to win the race for mayor of Inglewood, where City Hall observers are hoping he can keep order among the fractious council members.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Roosevelt F. Dorn, 61, was one of four candidates seeking to finish the term of former Mayor Ed Vincent, who was elected to the Assembly in November. The mayoral term will end in November 1998.

At his campaign headquarters a block from City Hall, Dorn said his first act would be to “bring the City Council together.”

Dorn stood in a roomful of supporters who had worked months to get him elected. One of those was the Rev. Frank Mallard, who helped put up more than 2,500 signs around the city calling for the judge to be elected.

“I know what he stands for. If he gives you his word, he stands |behind it,” Mallard said. “He ain’t for sale.”

Besides electing a new mayor, Inglewood voters went to the polls to select two City Council members and three school board members as well as to decide whether to impose four tax measures that would boost the city’s coffers by $4 million a year.

Candidates in all the races need more than 50% of the vote to win. Otherwise, the top two contenders will face each other in a June 3 runoff.

Nine candidates were on the ballot for the City Council position in District 1, Inglewood’s most affluent area. Jerome Horton was leading but a runoff appeared likely late Tuesday. The incumbent in that district, Curren Price, was one of the mayoral candidates.

In District 2 in north Inglewood, incumbent Judy Dunlap was ahead of Tony Scardenzan, a councilman for 12 years before Dunlap defeated him by 40 votes in the 1993 election. Three other candidates were far behind.

The five-member City Council will have a host of problems to solve in coming months. It must hire a new police chief to replace Oliver Thompson, who resigned in February. It must also find someone to replace City Manager Paul Eckles, who resigned in March after 21 years of service.

In addition, Inglewood is in danger of losing its top sports attractions, the Lakers basketball team and the Kings hockey team, both of which play at the Forum. Developers plan to build a new arena in downtown Los Angeles to house both franchises.

The new school board will also have several major issues to tackle. Inglewood’s high schools have the lowest SAT scores in Los Angeles County. The school district has also been stung by a series of embezzlement scandals, and Supt. McKinley Nash is under fire for his management style.

Three incumbents were among the 14 seeking election to three seats on the board. Late Tuesday, Thomasina Reed was far ahead of four challengers for seat No. 1, while incumbent Larry Aubry was behind Eveline Ross for seat No. 2. Dexter Henderson had fallen behind challengers Leonard Ross and Alice Grisby for seat No. 3.

The new mayor is to be paid $94,500 a year. Council members are to earn $47,244 a year. But the city may be hard-pressed to pay those salaries because of a projected $800,000 budget deficit.

All four tax measures on the ballot appeared headed for defeat late Tuesday. Three of the taxes--a 5% entertainment ticket tax, a 10% parking ticket tax, and a 14% hotel tax--were earmarked to help build a new arena for Inglewood if the Lakers and the Kings decided to stay in the city. An increase in the utility tax to 12% from 10% would be aimed at making up for any budget shortfall.

Voters also went to the polls in Glendale to choose three City Council members from among 10 candidates, including the three incumbents. Residents could vote for up to three candidates. Three seats on the city’s school board were also up for reelection, with five candidates vying for those positions, and six candidates were competing for three seats on the Glendale Community College board of trustees.