Government
Jun. 15, 2002
Cardona Will Become Chief Assistant to U.S. Attorney
LOS ANGELES - Just five months after he was tapped to head the criminal division of the Los Angeles city attorney's office, George S. Cardona will leave July 1 to became chief assistant to newly appointed U.S. Attorney Debra W. Yang.
"I've had an incredibly good time here, but this was an opportunity I couldn't turn down," Cardona said Thursday.
Cardona is no stranger to the U.S. attorney's office. He was a federal prosecutor for seven years, rising to head the criminal division.
Yang, a former federal prosecutor and Superior Court judge, became U.S. attorney last month, an appointee of President Bush. Yang said Thursday she worked with Cardona in the past and was pleased he agreed to return.
"The thing about George is that he has supervisory experience, he's a great administrator and he's well-respected for his intellect among the assistants in the office," she said.
The chief assistant typically runs much of the office's day-to-day operations. Cardona replaces Consuelo S. Woodhead, chief to former U.S. attorneys Alejandro N. Mayorkas and John S. Gordon. Mayorkas, appointed by President Clinton, stepped down after the 2000 election; Gordon held the post while the Bush administration found a replacement.
Yang said she planned to rely on Cardona to plot some of the office's long-term goals and to interface between the criminal and civil divisions. Cardona also will deal with pressing matters in the individual units, she said.
"I don't look at it as a hands-off situation," she said. "I look at it as, How many good heads can you bring to the table?'"
No other management changes are in the works right now, Yang said.
"One of the things I decided when I came on board was that I wanted to spend some time and fully access the needs of the office and not make wholesale changes unless they are necessary," she said.
Gordon is acting chief of the criminal division. It was unclear where Woodhead, who came from the civil side of the office and had not worked with Yang before, would go next.
"You would have to ask her what her intentions are," Yang said. "But I want to say that she has been a tremendous asset and resource to me. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with her and getting to know her. She was instrumental in making my transition smoother."
Woodhead could not be reached for comment.
Cardona's move is seen as a blow to City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, a former civil lawyer who has fended off accusations that he did not have enough criminal experience to do his job.
Ana Garcia, spokeswoman to Delgadillo, declined to comment on Cardona's move.
"It would be inappropriate for us to discuss personnel matters," Garcia said.
Terree Bowers, a former U.S. attorney who is Delgadillo's chief deputy, was seen as instrumental in hiring Cardona to help revamp the criminal division.
"We'll miss George, but Debra Yang made a personal request to him that he come back to the office, and he has to decide where he's needed most," Bowers said. "I think George made a lot of progress.
"Among the things he succeeded in was that he was instrumental in revising the city attorney's criminal guidelines, revamping task-force approaches and implementing the neighborhood prosecutor's program."
The program is a pet Delgadillo program in which a prosecutor is assigned to each police station to prosecute "quality of life" cases.
Cardona said there was no strife among Delgadillo, Bowers and himself.
"I was happy working for Rocky," Cardona said.
He graduated from Yale with degrees in physics and law. He worked for Irell & Manella, was a deputy district attorney and was an assistant U.S. attorney. He headed the criminal division of the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles and the appellate division of the San Francisco U.S. attorney's office.
One of his biggest cases was the prosecution of former Arizona Gov. Fife Symington, who was convicted of fraud. President Clinton pardoned Symington.
Cardona is hugely popular among the rank and file in the U.S. attorney's office, largely because he is viewed as brilliant, experienced and extremely modest.
"Fabulous," Assistant U.S. Attorney Ranee Katzenstein said to describe Yang's choice in Cardona.
"George is one of the most exceptional attorneys ever to come out of the U.S. attorney's office," said assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey B. Isaacs, who worked with Cardona on the Symington case and the prosecution of Giancarlo Parretti.
Cardona is especially liked for his willingness to roll up his sleeves and handle even the most menial tasks.
One prosecutor recalled how, on the day he returned to Los Angeles from winning the Symington case, Cardona signed up to handle the post-indictment arraignment calendar for the day, a grueling task typically avoided.
"I mean, this guy has no ego," the prosecutor said.
David Houston
david_houston@dailyjournal.com
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