Los Angeles City Council Regular Meeting - June 11, 2025
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Los Angeles City Council Regular Meeting - June 11, 2025
The Los Angeles City Council held its regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, June 11, 2025, with 13 members present at roll call (later 15). The meeting covered consent calendar items, closed session settlements, public comments, and a special motion to suspend the Brown Act for security briefings.
Consent Calendar
- Items 2 through 12 (public hearings held) were approved with 13 ayes. Corrective reports were noted for items 9 and 10.
- Items 6 and 19 through 33 from the Budget and Finance Committee were approved, including the following settlements and rejections (as read into the record):
- Item 19 (Brandy Menard et al. vs. City): settle for up to $195,000.
- Item 20 (Santos Oriano et al. vs. Johnny Charles Wilson et al.): settle for up to $325,000.
- Item 21 (Bianca Irene Arussi Placias vs. City): settle for up to $575,000.
- Item 22 (Jim Potapan vs. City): settle for up to $300,000.
- Item 23 (Jesus Sandoval et al. vs. City): settle for up to $1,150,000.
- Item 24 (Mark Sayeg vs. Jesus Carrillo Jr. et al.): settle for up to $150,000.
- Item 25 (Diana Vigil vs. City): settle for up to $125,000.
- Item 26 (Suzanne Kearney vs. City et al.): settle for up to $826,000.
- Item 27 (Elizabeth Greenwood vs. City et al.): settle for up to $500,000.
- Item 29 (Herbert Orlando Allen Jr. vs. Marin Alfredo Contreras et al.): reject offer of settlement.
- Item 30 (Anthony Dillion vs. City): reject offer of settlement.
- Item 31 (Florence Medical Center Incorporated vs. City): reject offer of settlement.
- Item 33 (United States of America ex rel. May Ling and Fair Housing Council vs. City): settle for up to $129,045.06.
- Item 5 (PD overtime, already approved by committee) was added and approved.
- Item 28 (TL vs. City et al.) was approved with recommendation to reject the offer of settlement.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Multiple speakers addressed items on cannabis regulation, social equity, and the budget. One speaker (social equity applicant) criticized the DCR fee study, arguing fees are unjustified and processing timelines are broken. Another speaker (social equity owner and co-chair of Black Los Angeles Cannabis Council) supported pausing round 3 of the social equity program but requested extension of temporary licenses and tax relief.
- Speakers also addressed LAPD involvement in ICE raids, arguing it violates the sanctuary city ordinance and constitutional protections. A representative from the California Immigrant Policy Center estimated over 300 people had been forcibly taken by ICE since Friday and urged the council to stop LAPD presence at such operations.
- General public comment included criticism of the budget, police hiring, and the suspension of the Brown Act. Several speakers were removed from the meeting for disruptions.
- During the special one motion public comment (reopened due to kiosk issues), speakers opposed suspending the Brown Act, calling it authoritarian and illegal. One speaker raised concerns about cannabis business struggles.
Discussion Items
- Item 7 (cannabis social equity program) was called for an amendment by Councilmember Padilla but was continued to June 17 after discussion with the city attorney.
- Item 16 was referred back to the Transportation Committee and was not available for public comment.
- Special One Motion (Rule 23): A motion by Harris-Dawson, Lee, and others was submitted to allow the council to receive security briefings outside regular meetings or closed session without violating the Brown Act, citing a fragile security situation. The motion initially passed, but the council reconsidered after learning that the kiosk for public sign-up was not available. A 10-minute public comment period was held, and the council then voted again.
- Item 32 (closed session) was approved per the PLUM committee report, with a motion by Councilmember Raman seconded by Councilmember Blumenfield.
Key Outcomes
- Consent calendar items (2-12, 19-33) and item 5 were approved.
- Settlements totaling over $4.1 million were authorized (excluding rejected offers).
- Items 1, 13-15, 17, and 18 were approved with 15 ayes.
- Item 7 was continued to June 17, 2025.
- Special One motion was approved (final vote 15 ayes) and sent for two weeks (or to the mayor? The transcript states "send special one for Twist" likely meaning to the mayor for signature).
- A motion to reconsider Special One passed (13 ayes, 1 no) prior to the second public comment period.
- The meeting adjourned in memory of Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys.
Meeting Transcript
Fallen in the line of duty. Today we gather to honor the lives and sacrifices of the 239 men and women of the LAPD who gave everything in the line of duty. Behind me is uh the LAPD Memorial Wall for officers fallen in the line of duty. We have 239 names on this wall behind me. Uh people who went out to work uh that day or night, not knowing whether they'd come back, and in those cases, they didn't come back home. And so our officers every day go out there and with that same uncertainty in their life and their families feel that as well. Uh that's part of the weight of the uh profession. Los Angeles is a great city because of individuals who answer the call to protect and serve. Today we honor those who gave all, and we renew our commitment to support those who continue their mission in the face of great challenges. Each name we remember today represents a life of courage, commitment, and selflessness. And behind each name is a family whose lives were forever changed. To the families here today, your loved ones' legacy lives on in the fabric of our city. My message to the families of fallen officers at LAPD and everywhere are you will never be forgotten. You will always be part of our family here and throughout the nation. A new institute wants to harness the full power of the human immune system. Coupling medical advances with computational power will have many benefits, and in the process will create jobs and revitalize a West Side neighborhood. We're sitting on a campus that's a million square feet, and we at the institute have now taken half a million square feet, and we're going to build out what will be without question the largest institute in the world for immunology and immunotherapy. So there's several things that make this truly unique. The first one is that in this building, there will be a next generation bioscience artificial intelligence center and a center for quantum computing. And quantum computing is the future, but it'll be like throwing a bucket of gasoline on AI, and AI is what's happening right now. So there is no institute in the world that has those three things. There are any number of fabulous research institutions around the world. And they're working on developing the next pill that you or your father can take every single day for the rest of your lives. We have no interest. Right now, today, there are several vaccines that will prevent you or your children from getting cancer. And my goal in the next year or two is to develop five more. We don't want you to get those diseases. We don't want you to get Alzheimer's or diabetes. They're all preventable diseases and they're all mediated by your immune system. So that's what we're about. This institute embodies a defining characteristic of Los Angeles, innovation. Angelinos are resilient, always dreaming and creating a better future. This is a first of its kind institute in California that will save lives through collaboration. And as a former medical professional, to me, this has particular meaning. The advancements that have happened in the last 20 years have been amazing. So just think of this institute and how much further we will move the needle here. This part of Westwood has been in decline for 30 years. When we build this out, it will rejuvenate the neighborhood directly. You'll see restaurants open up, dry cleaners, and so forth. The number that's always given is for every scientist, 10 high-paying jobs are created around that scientist. We intend to have 5,000 people in this building. So this is going to be massive for Los Angeles. This is going to change medicine. Instead of giving people pills, we're going to give them a vaccination. They're not going to get cervical cancer. They're not going to get liver cancer. They're not going to get breast cancer. This is going to change the world. Councilwoman Tracy Park joined Linker Legend, James Worthy, an LA Public Library at the Westchester Loyola Village Branch. There, they unveiled remodel spaces, which will serve up and assist in some reading and learning wins.
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