PI’s sentencing delayed in Costa Mesa spying and false DUI case
A private investigator who prosecutors allege was trying to dig up dirt on three Costa Mesa City Council members during the contentious 2012 election season is expected to be sentenced in March after a judge delayed the sentencing Friday.
Orange County Superior Court Judge W. Michael Hayes announced during a hearing that he was postponing Christopher Lanzillo’s sentencing until March 17 to give himself time to review information related to the case.
“There are things happening that need to play out in order for the court to make a decision that’s fair to the defendent and fair to the victims,” Hayes said. He did not elaborate.
Lanzillo, 46, of Lake Arrowhead pleaded guilty in September to three felony counts of conspiracy to commit a crime and one felony count of false imprisonment by violence, menace, fraud or deceit, according to court records.
He faces a sentence of up to four years and four months in prison.
The counts stem from accusations that Lanzillo illegally tracked then-Councilman Steve Mensinger and a lawyer and made a false drunk-driving report against Councilman Jim Righeimer.
Lanzillo, a former Riverside police detective, had pleaded not guilty to the charges but abruptly changed his plea during a September hearing, to prosecutors’ surprise.
Scott Alan Impola, 48, a private investigator from Canyon Lake, is facing the same charges, prosecutors said. He has pleaded not guilty and his trial is expected to begin in March, according to court records.
Prosecutors contend that Lanzillo and Impola were trying to dig up dirt on Mensinger, Righeimer and then-Councilman Gary Monahan, who were in a feud with Costa Mesa’s police union in the months before the City Council election in November 2012.
Authorities contend Lanzillo and Impola were working for the now-defunct Upland law firm Lackie, Dammeier, McGill & Ethir, which represented the Costa Mesa Police Assn. at the time.
Prosecutors alleged in previous hearings that the association, which represents rank-and-file officers, had recently increased the firm’s retainer with instructions to find information that could be damaging to the council members, two of whom — Mensinger and Monahan — were running in the election.
Neither the police union nor the law firm has been charged with a crime. The association has said it had no prior knowledge of any wrongdoing and that it fired the law firm soon after the false drunk-driving report came to light.
Mensinger, Righeimer and Righeimer’s wife, Lene, filed a civil lawsuit in 2013 against Lanzillo, the police association and Lackie, Dammeier, McGill & Ethir, alleging that they harassed and intimidated them.
Sy Everett, the police association’s attorney in the civil case, said in September that Lanzillo’s guilty plea had “no impact” on the union.
“I can tell you that the CMPA is pleased that justice has been served, and they will continue to assist the D.A. with any further investigation,” he said at that time.
The union did not “influence, direct or have any knowledge of any criminal wrongdoing,” he added.
Much of the case against the private investigators is related to the night of Aug. 22, 2012, when, according to prosecutors, Impola and a woman working with him were surveilling Monahan at his restaurant in Costa Mesa.
Prosecutors say Impola saw Righeimer at the restaurant and contacted Lanzillo, who authorities allege tailed Righeimer after the councilman left the business and drove away.
According to testimony at a preliminary hearing, Lanzillo called 911 and said Righeimer was swerving in and out of lanes as he drove.
After Righeimer arrived at his Mesa Verde home, a Costa Mesa police officer responded to the DUI call and administered a field sobriety test, which Righeimer passed.
Righeimer said outside court on Friday that some aspects of the situation may never completely come to light.
“Mr. Lanzillo and Mr. Impola are the key link to this extortion attempt and what has been done to other city managers and council members up and down California,” Righeimer said. “It’s important for people to recognize [that] what happened to us was just the Watergate break-in.”
Twitter: @HannahFryTCN
