Redondo Beach About Town
County judge ruling stands: Brand, Nehrenheim, ROW victorious against ‘shills’
Five months have passed, and nothing has changed: After issuing his written ruling, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Malcolm Mackey has continued to find in favor of defendants Bill Brand, Nils Nehrenheim, Way Craig and Linda Moffat in an election law case against developer-backed plaintiffs Chris Voisey and Arnette Travis.
Judge Mackey’s decision was issued on April 4, putting a cap on the Nov. 2018 trial that concluded in dramatic fashion, when Voisey and Travis’s attorney Bradley Hertz was ordered to answer who he was being paid by.
“Redondo Beach Waterfront LLC,” Hertz said, identifying a subsidiary of CenterCal Properties, the backer of the Waterfront: Redondo Beach redevelopment project.
Brand and Nehrenheim virulently opposed the project, which would have dramatically changed Redondo’s pier and harbor area; Craig led Rescue Our Waterfront PAC, a committee backing Measure C, a rezoning measure designed to squeeze the project. Brand, Nehrenheim and Measure C all won voter approval in March 2017.
Voisey and Travis’ lawsuit alleged that Brand and Nehrenheim illegally controlled ROW PAC, and that ROW PAC incorrectly stated its purpose as a committee.
Judge Mackey’s ruling reiterates what he said from the bench — that Brand and Nehrenheim were not controlling candidates, and that the defendants were acting in good faith.
The ruling continues to state that Hertz, who was employed by the “No on C” campaign, was “deeply involved on the other side” and that Travis and Voisey “are shills” for the developer.
The decision concludes with the court finding that “the election is finally over.”