Hernandez Makes an Apology

Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Hernandez, for the first time publicly and personally admitting addictions to cocaine and alcohol, emerged from treatment Tuesday to apologize to his family, colleagues and constituents and to proclaim his determination to return to the council seat his actions jeopardized.

“While I have expressed my regrets to many of you privately, I wish to openly express my regrets and seek the forgiveness of those who I have harmed because of my illness,” said Hernandez, speaking briskly and confidently, in contrast to his last brief public appearance, when he shuffled in and out of court without comment to the press or public. “I have the illness of chemical dependency addiction,” he added Tuesday.

Despite his place at the center of a scandal that titillated City Hall and clouded the councilman’s political future, Hernandez said he plans to return to his council duties Oct. 7.

Three weeks later, the Eastside councilman is expected back in court to enter a plea of guilty to the felony of cocaine possession. That plea had been expected Tuesday at an arraignment hearing, but the court proceedings were postponed until the county probation department can produce a report assessing his suitability for a special drug diversion program that would allow him to stay out of custody.

The return to public life on the city’s governing body promises to be a rough one, not only for Hernandez but also for the colleagues he will rejoin after an absence of more than a month.

“I think it’s going to be very hard for him, his constituents and for all of us,” Councilwoman Ruth Galanter said. “Nobody that I know of approves of using dope, and clearly that was what he was doing.”

In his far-ranging public apology delivered on the courthouse steps, Hernandez thanked supporters and staff, colleagues and family. He even expressed his gratitude to the police who arrested him, saying their intervention “probably saved my life.”

“I have been a bad example,” he said. “Now I’m going to be a good example.”

Not everyone was convinced. In Hernandez’s district, some constituents expressed admiration for his public admission. Others, however, vented their anger and laid plans to launch a recall campaign against him.

“He is no better than any gang member who gets picked up for drugs,” said Eva Castillo, a block captain in Lincoln Heights.

Hernandez was arrested Aug. 21 after weeks of police surveillance. On the same night, police searched his car and office, among other locations.

According to police reports, Hernandez was carrying about one-eighth of an ounce of cocaine, as well as a small quantity of marijuana and some drug paraphernalia. Police found more cocaine and marijuana in his City Hall office, where the councilman also had a legal but sizable collection of pornography, a fact that he alluded to in his statement Tuesday.

“I am not proud about any of these matters, and I apologize for the pain and embarrassment these side effects may have caused,” Hernandez said.

Flanked by his lawyer, Charles English, and a doctor who specializes in chemical dependency, Hernandez characterized his cocaine and alcohol addictions as illnesses and said they peaked in the past several months as he wrestled with the deaths of his mother and uncle.

But Hernandez declined to blame his problems on those tragedies.

“I make no excuses for my actions,” he said. “I chose inappropriate ways to deal with my grief and stress.”

If, as expected, he enters a guilty plea Oct. 27, Hernandez would probably be referred to a court-ordered treatment plan. The judgment against him would be deferred until he completes the program, which could last 18 to 36 months.

Hernandez would be required to pay for that program himself. If he completes it successfully, no guilty verdict will be entered against him. That is key to his political livelihood because the City Charter calls for any council member convicted of a felony to be removed from office.

However, escaping a felony conviction would hardly end the councilman’s troubles. His brush with the law has angered some constituents and fueled a recall campaign against Hernandez, who was first elected in 1991. On Tuesday, public reaction to the councilman’s apology was mixed.

Lincoln Heights resident Martha Moreno said Hernandez is unfit to deal with the issues plaguing his district. Last night, more than 20 rounds of gang gunfire erupted a few houses down the block from her home.

“Where’s my councilman?” she asked. “I need him here. I need him fighting the gangs. But he’s in rehab, he’s not out here. He needs more time to recover before he represents us.”

Not all residents were so hard on him. “I think he’s taken a responsible first step in admitting his addiction,” said Beatriz Olvera-Stotzer, who has worked with Hernandez on establishing affordable housing in Pico-Union. “The community at large here is praying for him and hoping he participates in his recovery until he can come back.”

Gloria Soto, director of the Pico-Union Improvement Assn., echoed those sentiments.

“I think it takes a very strong person to come out and do that,” she said. “It’s been very hard on everyone--we’re in shock. But we have worked so close to Mike that we believe in him and the things he has done for his community. He’s been a strong individual and the majority of people stand behind him.”

Elsewhere in Pico-Union, one of the most drug-ravaged communities in the 1st District, many residents originally voiced support and sympathy for the councilman. On Tuesday, however, several sounded less conciliatory, saying Hernandez’s apologies will not erase the damage done.

“We can forgive him, but he can’t stay in his position,” said Helen Vasquez, who has lived in Pico-Union for 25 years. “It’s not fair, it’s not right. . . . I resent the fact that he lowered the Chicano people with his behavior. He should be ousted and fired for behaving in such a manner.”

Disillusioned residents and candidates who opposed Hernandez in previous elections said they would officially file an intent for a recall election Oct. 1. Joyce Durand, whose husband, Jean-Marie, ran against Hernandez in 1993, said her husband would finance the recall movement. It would take 6,000 signatures to force a special election.

Hernandez downplayed those efforts, saying that those who had spoken against him were mainly people who disagreed with him before his arrest. “It’s called politics,” he said.

In contrast to the harsh words from some of his constituents, Hernandez’s colleagues and Mayor Richard Riordan were guardedly respectful Tuesday.

“If he can lick it, we should stand by him,” Riordan said. “But I have mixed feelings about this because we should not tolerate drug use and we should not promote it to our children.”

Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg, who has supported Hernandez from the outset, said she remains steadfast. “My support for him depends only on whether or not he is willing to do what it takes to remain clean and sober,” she said. “If he has the character to do what it takes and go beyond this, more power to him.”

Several council members declined to comment, and Councilwoman Laura Chick, who heads the Public Safety Committee, said she and her colleagues were in an awkward position--whatever their views of their colleague’s conduct.

As long as Hernandez avoids a felony conviction, the council has limited leeway or precedent for disciplining its members.

“There is no vehicle here in the city that sets a framework for a City Council member to be fired by his colleagues,” she said. “I do not believe in closing ranks. We condemn the LAPD for closing ranks to protect their own. We shouldn’t do that . . . but we don’t have anything in place” to deal with situations like the one Hernandez is in.

Times staff writers Jim Newton, Greg Krikorian and Hugo Martin contributed to this story.