Uneasy City Hall Awaits Hernandez’s Return

On the surface, the 1st District City Council office appears to be functioning normally: Constituents’ calls are answered, motions drafted, community meetings attended, visiting politicians entertained.

The one thing missing is the officeholder.

Mike Hernandez, arrested last month on a felony cocaine possession charge, is winding up the first phase of a drug rehabilitation program this week. He is expected in court today and is expected to enter a guilty plea, sources say, in an arrangement that would allow him to continue his drug rehabilitation program for at least 18 months. Under such a deal, Hernandez would avoid both time behind bars and a felony conviction on his record.

Without their boss, the councilman’s staff members say, they are actually working more cohesively than usual. Staff meetings, usually erratically scheduled, now are held at least once a week. Field deputies are being told to spend more time in neighborhoods, focusing on the basics: trash pickups, graffiti removal, street maintenance.

But as time draws closer to the councilman’s return to work, probably next month, an uneasiness is spreading throughout City Hall.

*

Will Hernandez return to the open arms of his council colleagues, some of whom haven’t spoken publicly about his arrest and others who may have second thoughts about their outpouring of support before they heard all the evidence against him? Will he maintain his council seat despite rumblings in his community and elsewhere that he should resign? Can he effectively return to work while continuing an aggressive recovery program?

Some say Hernandez’s return may be his toughest fight yet.

Indeed, some community members say he shouldn’t attempt a comeback.

Several say his district isn’t getting the attention it so badly deserves. This week, those residents will hold a news conference calling on Hernandez to resign. They also are expected to demand a grand jury investigation into the actions of Hernandez’s staff, who some community members believe covered up his drug use.

*

“When you do this to a community, it really hurts,” said Eva Castillo, a Lincoln Heights resident and Neighborhood Watch activist who said the arrest caused widespread disillusionment. “There’s no excuse for it. . . . How can anybody be for him now that he’s done what he’s done? It’s a real slap in the face.”

Added Highland Park neighborhood activist Albert Molina: “People in this area want him out. After we talk to our children and tell them the dangers of drugs, now we have a guy leading the area who is using drugs. It’s ridiculous.”

Hernandez’s staff members vehemently deny being involved in covering up his drug use--saying that they too were surprised by the news.

While waiting for his return, they say that the community is still being adequately represented in the council.

“I’ve seen the staff pull together in a way that’s never happened in the past six years [when Hernandez was first elected],” said Morrie Goldman, Hernandez’s chief of staff and close friend. “We’re clicking on all cylinders.”

At the same time, some of Hernandez’s colleagues, including council President John Ferraro, acknowledged that he will have to devote time to rebuilding trust and support from those around the council horseshoe.

“It’s going to be up to Mike to prove to himself and to his colleagues that he’s capable of doing it,” Ferraro said. “I think it’s going to be difficult at first.”

The kind of diplomatic style needed to make amends has never come easily to Hernandez, 44. The fiery politician, a former bail bondsman, is known for his confrontational manner--even for yelling at colleagues in closed sessions and angrily chastising city officials.

Ferraro, who chatted with Hernandez by telephone late last week, said he advised him to meet individually with each council member before he returns--and to stay out of a city car until he officially comes back to work.

*

Before his Aug. 21 arrest, Hernandez was under surveillance for two months by a multi-agency law enforcement task force that logged 10 occasions when the councilman was alleged to have purchased cocaine at two residences. Police have videotape in which Hernandez is seen making movements like he is snorting cocaine in his car before a community event. Police say they also recovered cocaine residue on the councilman’s desk in his third-floor City Hall office.

Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg, who immediately rallied to Hernandez after his arrest, said she believes that her colleagues will continue to support him--but only if he remains committed to his recovery program. Goldberg and others have helped Hernandez’s staff, introducing motions on his office’s behalf, among other things.

“I think most council members are willing to say, ‘You screwed up royally and you know that, but as long as you’re willing to do something about it, that’s OK,’ ” Goldberg said. “If he doesn’t . . . I think he’ll quickly lose everybody’s support--including mine.”

But not everyone at City Hall is as magnanimous. Some high-level staff members say it is egregious for an elected official charged with a felony to return to business as usual. They say a double standard exists for the council.

“They are in a fraternity and they will circle the wagons,” said one City Hall source. “The politically correct thing to do is to be supportive.”

Added a top council aide who declined to be identified: “Essentially he showed up to work on drugs, he used drugs in his office and in a city vehicle. Any other city employee would have been fired.”

Still, even some of his harshest critics agree that Hernandez’s apology to the community, including a recent letter to district residents, indicated a much-needed openness about his drug problem. Police say Hernandez, who appeared to be struggling financially, had a $150-a-day habit.

*

“It’s going to be a tough challenge,” said Steve Afriat, a consultant who ran Hernandez’s reelection campaign and has counseled Hernandez since he took office in 1991. “Even under easier circumstances, recovery is challenging. The fact that his is being aired in public is even more challenging.”

Times staff writer Matea Gold contributed to this story.