Government
Jun. 1, 2001
Probe Eyes Alleged Misuse of County Equipment
SANTA ANA - A senior assistant state attorney general confirmed Wednesday that his office is reviewing possible evidence that an Orange County deputy district attorney illegally used his office computer in his campaign for a city council seat.
The attorney general's office agreed to review deputy prosecutor Scott Steiner's actions at the request of his boss, District Attorney Tony Rackauckas, according to Gary W. Schons, who heads the attorney general's criminal division in San Diego.
Citing office policy, Schons would neither confirm nor deny that a criminal investigation was under way. He refused to comment on the status of the inquiry.
Steiner, 27, lost his bid for an Orange City Council seat last year. He is running again for a seat in next week's special election.
"The only thing we can say at this point is that the matter was referred to us for evaluation," Schons said.
Steiner is the son of William Steiner, former chair of the Orange County Board of Supervisors.
The Daily Journal reported April 30 that Scott Steiner confirmed that he used his office computer in connection with his political campaign, but he denied violating the law or workplace policies.
Steiner said he believed he acted correctly by accessing campaign-related documents only during lunch and after hours.
Some of the documents, however - including campaign-related e-mails, a list of campaign contributors, campaign fliers, political correspondence and debate notes - were date stamped during weekday, working hours, according to copies obtained by the Daily Journal.
Robert Stern, president of the Center for Governmental Studies in Los Angeles, said after reviewing the documents that they could "present problems" for Steiner.
Section 424 of the Penal Code, Stern said, makes diverting county resources to personal use a felony.
Frank Caterinicchio, Steiner's campaign consultant, said neither he nor his client "have any comment" on the attorney general's review. Caterinicchio referred questions to district attorney spokeswoman Tori Richards, who said she could not comment on a personnel matter.
Rackauckas has refused to comment specifically on Steiner's actions.
But after a brief review March 31 of the documents obtained by the Daily Journal, Rackauckas said, "I don't believe people should be using our office to campaign. ... This is showing me we have to make it clear that this can't be done in the office, and I intend to do that."
Earlier this month, Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer suspended his endorsement of Steiner after Rackauckas told the supervisor that he was looking into Steiner's actions.
Among the documents found on Steiner's computer was a campaign-related request on official district attorney stationery seeking a ride-along on a Costa Mesa Police Department helicopter.
An e-mail from Steiner to a colleague dated Monday, Aug. 28, 2000, requested a campaign contribution from Deputy District Attorney Susan Kang's soon-to-be husband, Michael Schroeder, the former chair of the Republican Party in Orange County.
Michael Jonathan Grinfeld
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