Belmont Probe Has Narrowed, D.A. Says

Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley said Wednesday that he has narrowed his criminal investigation into the construction of the Belmont Learning Complex and has ruled out some theories of possible wrongdoing in the case.

Cooley also said he has reorganized the task force he formed seven months ago to determine whether any environmental laws were broken by Los Angeles Unified School District officials or by the unfinished high school’s developer and consulting firms. The task force also has examined allegations of overbilling by contractors for the $175-million project, which sits uncompleted and abandoned near downtown.

The district attorney said he met with his advisors last week for 16 hours over four days to review the progress and findings of the task force. Though ruling out some theories of wrongdoing, Cooley said, “There are still some things we are pursuing vigorously.”

Cooley did not rule out the possibility that criminal charges will be filed, but said, “I pledged to review it. I didn’t pledge to have indictments.”

John Zajec, head deputy of target crimes, has been heading the task force for the prosecutor’s office since the beginning of August.

During last year’s campaign, Cooley criticized his opponent, then-Dist. Atty. Gil Garcetti, for not thoroughly investigating the Belmont case. Garcetti determined that no laws were broken.

Cooley declined to comment on whether prosecutors would present their case to a grand jury, but he said the task force is still investigating the case. “I’m not backing down on anything,” he said. “When we are finished, the public is going to hear an earful on how we ended up with the largest public works tragedy in the U.S.”