Legal questions are being triggered by revelations of a closed-door contract-changing process involving most of the elected supervisors.
Author Archives: Nick Gerda
Nick covers the city of Santa Ana, as well as the County of Orange, often reporting on issues like homelessness, public safety, mental health, and the role of money in politics.
Since joining Voice of OC in 2011, Nick has regularly shed light on topics that are often kept in the shadows. He’s reported on systemic problems in the county’s mental health system. He also led a reporting team that produced sophisticated looks at how the Disney corporation campaign contributions influenced recent elections in Anaheim.
Nick also revealed evidence of elected leaders using their official powers to apparently pressure government contractors into donating to their election campaigns, in an article that was awarded best news story of the year by the Orange County Press Club. He firmly believes journalism should inform the public and help hold the powerful accountable.
An Orange County native, Nick first started covering local government in his mid-teens, before attending Santa Ana College, the American University in Cairo, and UC Irvine, where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science.
Languages spoken: English, elementary Spanish, minimal Arabic and minimal Japanese
Areas of expertise: Local government, local politics, homelessness, mental health policy, campaign finance, California Public Records Act, Ralph M. Brown Act, County of Orange government, Santa Ana city government and municipal finance.
Posted inGovernment
With Hundreds of Millions in New Covid Recovery Spending, Some Cities Ask Public for Input While the County Does Not
Some, like the city of Santa Ana, asking the public how it wants them to spend the wave of new recovery cash. County of Orange officials are not.
Posted inGovernment
OC Prosecutors Battled Against Their Own Boss, DA Spitzer, Standing Up for Harassment Victim
Prosecutors told county HR investigators they refused an effort by DA Todd Spitzer to retaliate against a female employee who came forward about sexual harassment by a friend of Spitzer’s. Spitzer says he was not trying to retaliate against the employee at all.
Posted inGovernment
After Public Backlash, Orange County Officials Back Up on Secret Contracts
Officials back away from coronavirus emergency contracting powers for new contracts but keep expansions of existing contracts off public agendas, at the urging of Chairman Andrew Do.
Posted inGovernment
OC Halts Plan to Destroy Meeting Records in Response to Voice of OC’s Questions, Considers Digital Archiving
Officials are now promising not to destroy any public meeting records, in response to questions Voice of OC raised last month about why they were crafting a written policy to destroy the documents but not to preserve them digitally.
Posted inGovernment
DA Todd Spitzer Says it Was Too Hard to Fundraise for Victims’ Memorial He Championed at a County Park, Yet He Raised 50 Times More for His Own Election
The memorial is years late and massively scaled down. Spitzer raised $3 million for his election but only $58,000 for the victims memorial he promised to champion.
Posted inGovernment
Political Campaigning Happened at DA’s Office During Victims’ Event, Says County Supervisor Who Attended
A county supervisor says there was blatant political campaigning at the DA’s headquarters last week during a victims rally event that was organized, promoted and broadcast with taxpayer resources. DA Todd Spitzer hasn’t responded to messages for comment.
Posted inGovernment
‘Vaccine Passport’ Controversy Puts Renewed Focus on OC’s Secretive, Costly and Glitchy Vax App
County officials have been contradicting themselves on whether they approved millions in extra spending on the app, and won’t yet reveal the full terms of what the extra money is for.
Posted inSafety, Security & Justice
OC Deputy Sheriffs Get 5 Times More Training on Guns Than De-Escalation. Could That Be Changing?
New sheriff’s deputies receive 16 hours of de-escalation training, compared with 99 hours of training on guns and chemical agents. Some are calling for more de-escalation training, as local cities look at having health workers respond to non-violent mental health crises.
Posted inCountywide
Santa Ana Looks at Officially Recognizing Residents Who Died from Covid
The city has been among the hardest-hit in OC by the pandemic. Mayor Vicente Sarmiento wants to see recognition of those who have died.
