Perrodin Seeks to Block Ruling That Ejected Him

Ousted Compton mayor Eric Perrodin asked an appeals court Tuesday to suspend a judge’s controversial ruling earlier this month that tossed him from office.

A petition was filed on Perrodin’s behalf by election law attorney Frederic Woocher, who says Superior Court Judge Judith Chirlin exceeded her authority and abused her discretion in awarding the mayoralty to Omar Bradley.

“We’re requesting a stay because the Superior Court’s ruling is completely unprecedented,” Woocher said.

The request for a stay was filed in addition to Perrodin’s appeal of Chirlin’s ruling, which was filed Friday.

Court officials said a response from the state’s 2nd District Court of Appeal could come as early as this week.

Chirlin’s ruling followed the then-two-term-incumbent Bradley’s defeat June 5 by Perrodin in a stunning upset. Bradley sued, alleging rampant election fraud.

In her Feb. 8 ruling in that case, Chirlin found evidence of fraud, but said it was mostly on the part of Leslie Irving, whom Chirlin removed from her post on the Compton City Council and barred from holding office in California.

Chirlin also removed Perrodin from office and installed Bradley after finding Perrodin had unfairly benefited from being listed first on ballots instead of in the legally required random order, an error Chirlin attributed to City Clerk Charles Davis.

Perrodin’s request for a stay contends that he and the citizens of Compton “will suffer grave and irreparable harm” if Bradley remains in office.

Among the alleged harms Perrodin cites are nearly $1 million in claims against the city that were scheduled to be discussed in closed City Council sessions Tuesday night. The claims include $874,802 in legal fees and court costs, $43,241 in “salary compensation” for Bradley for the seven months he was out of office and $38,789 in back pay for Melanie Andrews, whom Irving defeated.

The council did not consider those claims in closed session. Instead it voted to place city manager Harold Caldwell, who was named after Perrodin was elected, on administrative leave with pay and it named John D. Johnson as interim city manager, city officials said.

Johnson was the city manager during Bradley’s administration.

Perrodin said he will eventually win what could be a lengthy appeal process; his request for a stay says the city “will have a hard time recovering any of these funds once they are paid to the claimants.”

Compton City Atty. Legrand Clegg said Chirlin’s ruling does not specifically provide for retroactive compensation or call for Perrodin and Irving to reimburse the city for compensation received during their terms.

“Absent such an order from Judge Chirlin,” Clegg said, “any authorization of retroactive compensation can only be construed as a gift of public funds.”

Several legal experts expressed surprise at Chirlin’s verdict, including Woocher, whom Perrodin hired after deciding to appeal.

Attorney Bradley Hertz, who represented Bradley, said the California Election Code requires that Bradley remain in office during the appeal process.

“You don’t want the mayor’s office to be a revolving door every time a court makes a ruling,” Hertz said.