D.A. DECLARES BELMONT SITE A 'CRIME SCENE'.
Byline: Beth Barrett and Harrison Sheppard Staff Writers District Attorney Steve CooleyStephen Lawrence ("Steve") Cooley (born May 1, 1947 in Los Angeles, California) is a veteran prosecutor who was elected as Los Angeles County's 36th District Attorney on November 7, 2000. He was sworn in for his second term on December 6, 2004. ..... Click the link for more information. has designated the Belmont Learning CenterThis Belmont Learning Center contains information about a building currently under construction.It may contain information of a speculative nature, and the content may change dramatically as construction progresses and new information becomes available. ..... Click the link for more information. a ``crime scene'' and warned Superintendent Roy RomerRoy R. Romer (born October 31, 1928 in Garden City, Kansas, United States) was the 39th governor of Colorado and served as the superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District from 2001 to 2006. ..... Click the link for more information. to restrict access to the 35-acre site even as he seeks a private firm to finish it as a school or buy it.
The warning letter from Cooley - who reopened a criminal investigation into Belmont after his election in November - was sent Wednesday, a day after the district released its proposal to solicit bids from private developers interested in completing the $175 million abandoned high school or buying the site. The letter elicited a harsh response from Romer, who called it preposterous and accused the district attorney of grandstanding. The letter, undersignedun·der·signed adj.1. Having signatures or a signature at the bottom or end. Used of documents.2. Signed or having signed at the bottom or end of a document: ..... Click the link for more information. by Cooley's special assistant Anthony G. Patchett, said that due to the past grading and movement of contaminated contaminated,v 1. made radioactive by the addition of small quantities of radioactive material.2. made contaminated by adding infective or radiographic materials.3. an infective surface or object. soil, ``it appears the LAUSD LAUSD Los Angeles Unified School District (Los Angeles, CA) and others have created the illegal storage and disposal of hazardous wasteHazardous wasteAny solid, liquid, or gaseous waste materials that, if improperly managed or disposed of, may pose substantial hazards to human health and the environment. Every industrial country in the world has had problems with managing hazardous wastes. ..... Click the link for more information. at the Belmont Learning Complex (Center).'' ``Therefore, the Belmont Learning Complex (Center) is considered a 'crime scene' and should be treated as such. Access should be restricted and care should be taken not to tamper with the monitoring wells,'' it concluded. The letter means prospective bidders may be limited in their access to the site and their ability to evaluate its environmental conditions until the criminal investigation is completed. Patchett said the instructions do not necessarily bar prospective bidders from the site, but do provide the parameters for their access. But Romer, who reinstated five suspended administrators involved in the Belmont fiasco and has pushed for its completion, issued a statement questioning why the district attorney was not being more constructive in trying to help Romer with the Belmont issue. Romer said: ``In my 40 years of public service, including 12 as governor, I can't remember receiving a letter from a public official that is as strange as this one. ``To try to intimidate this school district from finding a solution to Belmont by declaring Belmont a crime scene is preposterous. We have already said we will fully cooperate with any investigation or prosecution of wrongdoing wrong·do·er n.One who does wrong, especially morally or ethically.
wrongdo relating to relating to relate prep → concernantrelating to relate prep → bezüglich +gen, mit Bezug auf +acc Belmont. ... This letter is below the standard this community deserves from a district attorney.'' Armed with dozens of investigative documents ignored by his predecessor, Cooley in January announced he was reopening a criminal probe of the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Unified School District's abandoned high school - the nation's costliest school, built atop an old oil field seeping potentially deadly and explosive gases. Patchett said the letter to Romer was to underscore the depth of concern regarding Belmont. ``I don't believe Mr. Romer knows the seriousness of this situation,'' Patchett said. ``He's an out-of-state person, and while some people may have brought him up to speed, I don't think he realizes what occurred at that site when the dirt was moved around.'' To build the school, developers scooped away part of a hillside, drawing closer to the shallow oil field that lies below. Patchett added that neighbors continue to complain of the rotten smell associated with hydrogen sulfide hydrogen sulfide, chemical compound, H2S, a colorless, extremely poisonous gas that has a very disagreeable odor, much like that of rotten eggs. It is slightly soluble in water and is soluble in carbon disulfide. . The gas, which has been detected in the soil beneath Belmont, is potentially deadly. Because no barrier was built beneath the school, critics have charged the buildings are vulnerable to both hydrogen sulfide accumulations and methane, which can explode at certain concentrations if ignited. Patchett said he doubts the structures as they stand today could pass inspection and that the Belmont Task Force is trying to determine if the site is located on a quake fault line. Patchett declined to comment on what step prosecutors might be prepared to take if Belmont is disturbed in defiance of prosecutors' instructions. School board members said the letter will complicate efforts to allow bidders to evaluate the site. ``Belmont has been a problem from Day One,'' said board member Julie Korenstein, a staunch Belmont opponent. ``It can't do anything but continue to present problems. There are those that are madly trying to find ways of remediating it. It's going to be extremely difficult and complex, and this makes it even more difficult.'' Board member Caprice ca·price n.1. a. An impulsive change of mind.b. An inclination to change one's mind impulsively.c. Young said officials should heed the district attorney's directive. ``He's doing a very important job that is critical to regaining public integrity around this project,'' Young said. ``And I would not want to tamper with or thwart his investigation in any way.''
