San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders wants to hire a special prosecutor to decide whether the city should resurrect a case against a Sunroad executive. KPBS Reporter Amita Sharma has more.
Story was once a top official at the city before he became a top official at Sunroad. Last year, City Attorney Mike Aguirre accused Story of violating rules barring city officials from lobbying with a year after leaving a city job. But a judge later disqualified Aguirre from the case.
The state attorney general's office and DA Bonnie Dumanis have declined to prosecute for what they call discretionary reasons. Lawyer Knut Johnson says Sanders's request to hire a private prosecutor is still unnecessary.
Johnson: There's a U.S. Attorney's office that can be cross-designated to try cases in state court. There are other outfits out there that could potentially handle it.
Johnson says allowing politicians to hire private prosecutors carries the potential for abuse.
Amita Sharma, KPBS News.
