Funds Returned in Council Races

A councilman and an unsuccessful council candidate have returned money to contributors, apparently resolving allegations of campaign contribution violations.

Santa Ana Councilman Ted R. Moreno has returned $200 to Santa Ana-based Beard Printing and $198 to the Manufactured Housing Educational Trust, according to interviews and documents filed with City Clerk Janice C. Guy.

In December, Guy forwarded a letter to City Atty. Joseph W. Fletcher asking that he look into allegations that the city charter had been violated when Moreno received more than $1,000 in the 1992-96 election cycle from both Beard Printing and the trust.

In a more recent letter to Fletcher, Guy said the “matter appears to be moot.”

Also at issue were three $1,000 donations to unsuccessful 1996 council candidate Jose Solorio. The businesses--Caribou Industries, California Property Investments and Eastcom--appear to be owned by the same person, Michael F. Harrah.

Officials said those contributions may have violated the $1,000 limit set by Proposition 208, which has since been overturned.

Still, Solorio’s campaign committee returned the contributions from Caribou and Eastcom, according to the city clerk.

Guy has since forwarded a letter regarding Solorio to Dist. Atty. Michael Capizzi, whom she asked to look into the allegations. Guy again said “the matter appears to be moot,” this time because of the change in Proposition 208 and the fact that the donations were returned.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Guy Ormes said that his office’s inquiry into Solorio was not closed, but that he did not know about Guy’s letter.