Los Angeles City Councilmember Curren Price is facing a deepening legal quagmire, with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office piling on two new public corruption charges; this comes in the wake of an investigation that brought to light evidence that his wife's company received significant payments from agencies that Price later favored in Council votes, as initially reported by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. According to the statement, the alleged payments totaling over $800,000 are linked to votes for awarding multimillion-dollar contracts to the city's housing authority and LA Metro.
The original accusations, which date back to June 2023, included five felony counts of embezzlement of government funds, three counts of perjury, and two counts of conflict of interest; these charges were described in a FOX LA report, and Price pleaded not guilty in December 2023, after which he was let out on his recognizance, the case has since evolved. Additional evidence gleaned from subpoenas showcases a pattern of alleged corruption that further entangles the councilmember in legal wrangling.
Delving into specifics, the DA's Office alleges that between October 22, 2019, and June 30, 2020, the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles paid about $609,600 to Del Richardson & Associates, a company owned by Price’s wife; during the period of these payments, Price participated and voted in favor of a $35 million federal grant and a state grant application for $252 million, which raised flags among his staff about potential conflicts of interest before the votes, yet the councilmember proceeded. Additionally, it is reported by the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office that between October 27, 2020, and October 20, 2021, LA Metro funneled around $219,500 to the same company, a time frame which also saw Price endorse a $30 million award to LA Metro through his vote.
The allegations against Price extend beyond these payments, with the DA claiming that Price leveraged his position to grant city lease agreements and direct over $2 million in federal COVID-19 grants to the nonprofit Home at Last while it was renting space from the Urban Healthcare Project, with Price at the helm as CEO; according to District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman, "Our communities expect and deserve better from their public officials... Self-dealing and pay-to-play politics will not be tolerated in Los Angeles County," which he expressed in the official statement from the DA's Office. Should he be convicted of all charges as they stand now, Price is staring down the potential of over a decade behind bars.
Price, who has been representing the Ninth District since 2013, is scheduled for arraignment on the new charges Thursday in the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, raising questions about the intricate ties between public service and private gain, particularly in a city that looks to its officials to embody principles of integrity and transparency. This evolving scandal serves as a stark reminder of the ongoing battle against corruption in the urban tapestry of Los Angeles politics.
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