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Moreno Valley council reports closed-session vote to offer settlement in Thomas federal case; mayor recused
Summary
City attorney reported the council voted 3-1, with Mayor Cabrera recused, to offer a settlement to Elmer Thomas and dismiss the city from the federal lawsuit; public commenters criticized prior legal costs.
The Moreno Valley City Council on Sept. 2 reported a closed-session decision to offer a settlement in a federal lawsuit filed by Elmer Robbins Thomas Jr. against the city and former Mayor Ulysses Cabrera.
City Attorney Steven Continuos reported that the council voted 3-1, with Mayor Ulysses Cabrera recusing himself because of a potential financial conflict of interest. According to the report, Mayor Pro Tem Baca Santa Cruz, Council Member Ed Delgado and Council Member Shalinda Bernard voted to offer a settlement and dismiss the city from the federal case; Council Member Elena Gonzalez voted no.
"In the city of Moreno Valley, a municipal entity, the city council voted 3-1 with Mayor Cabrera recusing himself due to a potential financial conflict of interest," Continuos stated when announcing the closed-session action.
Following the closed-session announcement, multiple public speakers criticized the city's past legal spending defending the mayor. Luis Palomares called the original case "baseless" and said he opposed using taxpayer money to defend the mayor in subsequent litigation. Roy Blackard and others urged greater transparency and asked the council to explain why the city reached that point and how much had been spent on prior litigation.
The city attorney's public report explained the council’s direction: to offer a settlement to Thomas that would dismiss the city from the federal case and not indemnify Cabrera in his individual capacity. No dollar amounts for the settlement were disclosed in the public report.
The closed-session outcome was announced during the meeting's section reporting the result of closed-session deliberations; the transcript records the city attorney reading the report into the public record. Council members did not vote in open session to ratify a specific settlement amount during the public meeting, and the city did not provide specific settlement terms in the staff report read aloud at the meeting.
