Judge Orders Trial for School Board Member
A Superior Court judge ruled Tuesday there is sufficient evidence for a West Covina school board member to stand trial for allegedly lying on a candidate’s declaration about where he lived.
Judge H. Chester Horn Jr., however, dismissed three other charges against Peter Sabatino Jr., 48.
Horn found there was insufficient evidence on two counts of perjury prosecutors filed against Sabatino and a count of filing a false candidate declaration in 1997.
Sabatino, a 13-year incumbent, has maintained he lives in a house with his mother in Valinda, which is part of the West Covina Unified School District.
Prosecutors, however, allege he lives in a Downey house he owns and where his teenage son resides. State law requires school board members and candidates to reside in their districts.
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