Probe of 2 on D.A.’s Staff Still Unresolved

Seven months after he accused two investigators of stealing evidence, Orange County Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas has yet to decide the fate of the pair, who have received more than $100,000 in salary while on suspension.

Rackauckas received an independent report on the accusations from the Riverside district attorney about a month ago but has not acted on it. During that period alone, the two investigators received about $12,000 in salary from the county.

Riverside County, which Rackauckas asked to examine the matter, forwarded its findings to Rackauckas on Aug. 27, said chief investigator Michael J. Curfman, who declined to reveal the report’s contents.

Rackauckas’ spokeswoman, Tori Richards, said the district attorney has not acted because the investigation is continuing.

“There’s a couple more things that need to be done,” she said, declining to elaborate. “We’re going to try to get this finished as soon as possible.”

A criminal probe of the two investigators by the state attorney general’s office ended when prosecutors concluded that no crime had been committed.

The investigation is among at least six launched this year over various accusations of misconduct against Rackauckas and some of his critics within the office.

The biggest issue centers on Newport Beach businessman Patrick DiCarlo, a friend of the district attorney who last year called Rackauckas and reported that he was being threatened over a business deal gone sour.

Rackauckas assigned the matter to his organized-crime unit, but later pulled the investigators off the case when DiCarlo complained that the two treated him more like a suspect than a victim. In February, Rackauckas placed Barry Foye and Lyle Wilson on paid leave and publicly accused them of stealing tapes and other records related to the investigation.

To avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, Rackauckas asked the state attorney general to conduct a criminal investigation and Riverside County prosecutors to handle a personnel probe.

Wilson filed suit in May, seeking his immediate reinstatement. His lawyer called the discipline a miscarriage of justice and said Rackauckas inappropriately interceded on DiCarlo’s behalf. DiCarlo is one of Rackauckas’ biggest political contributors.

“My client didn’t do anything wrong. The district attorney’s office retaliated against Mr. Wilson for doing his job,” said lawyer Gregory G. Petersen.

“There’s no way he should be assigned to his house, given the utter lack of merit to the claims.”

The DiCarlo case is one of several in which the district attorney has been accused of showing favoritism toward political supporters. Critics have also accused him of improperly asking staff members to work on a nonprofit charity in his name.

Others have faulted Rackauckas for intervening in a case involving another key campaign contributor, multimillionaire developer George Argyros.

Earlier this year, Rackauckas ordered prosecutors to withdraw a lawsuit against Argyros’ apartment company, which was accused of keeping tenants’ security deposits unfairly.

Citing a possible conflict of interest, Rackauckas later withdrew from the case and asked the state attorney general’s office to take it over.