Westminster City Councilwoman Amy Phan West pleaded not guilty Monday to allegedly attempting to bribe parking enforcement officers in 2023, to stop her husband’s car from being towed.
[Read: Westminster City Councilwoman Charged With Attempting to Bribe Parking Officer]
After publication of this article, Phan West denied the allegations through her attorney, Randy Collins, saying they were false.
“Amy Phan West never made any statements about her official duties to influence a parking control attendant from towing a vehicle that her husband had parked near their home. She is confident that this matter will be resolved favorably,” said Collins in a Tuesday email.
Kimberly Edds, a spokeswoman for the OC District Attorney’s office, did not respond to a request for comment Monday.
Phan West’s pretrial is scheduled for April 15 at the Westminster Courthouse at 8:30 am.
The misdemeanor charge comes after city officials sued Phan West along with fellow Councilmember NamQuan Nguyen last year for repeatedly disrupting city council meetings and violating the council’s decorum rules.
[Read: Westminster Asks a Judge to Help Rein in Unruly City Council Meetings]
Phan West has opposed the city lawsuit, calling it a politically motivated attack against her and NamQuan Nguyen, that violates her First Amendment rights.
The councilwoman was also censured by her colleagues in August for a laundry list of allegations that includes disclosing confidential information, publicly berating residents, disparaging staff, lying and trespassing.
[Read: Westminster City Council Censures Amy Phan West Over Laundry List of Allegations]
The next Westminster City Council meeting is scheduled for Wednesday Feb. 26 at 6 pm.
Hosam Elattar is a Voice of OC reporter and corps member with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @ElattarHosam.