Deliberations Start In Trial of Developer Accused Of Bribing Palm Springs Mayor

PALM DESERT, CA — Jury deliberations got underway Friday in the trial of an 86-year-old real estate developer accused of enriching the one-time mayor of Palm Springs with six-figure bribes to cinch his support for projects.

Testimony in the trial of John Elroy Wessman concluded Wednesday at the Banning Justice Center, and the prosecution and defense presented final arguments to jurors Thursday afternoon. However, the defense did not complete its statement, pushing the hearing into Friday morning, when the prosecution also presented a rebuttal before Riverside County Superior Court Judge Samuel Diaz sent the jury behind closed doors to weigh evidence from the three-week trial.

Wessman is charged with nine counts of bribery of a public official and one count of conspiracy to commit a felony.

"He acted with the corrupt intent to bribe," Deputy District Attorney Amy Zois said in her closing statement. "Who benefited the most to their pocket? It's the defendant. This is not about a bribe. It's about corruption and the public trust."

She reminded the jury of evidence confirming Wessman's signature on numerous checks issued against Wessman Development Inc. in 2012 and 2013. The money was part of the payoff scheme involving then-Mayor Steve Pougnet, the prosecutor said.

"He has said that he signed all of those checks without knowing what's going on?" she said. "It's ridiculous to believe that a CEO wouldn't follow the major decisions of his own company."

She dismissed the defendant's claims of ignorance about the flow of funds, telling jurors, "You know the truth: He's guilty."

Zois said the defendant and fellow developer Richard Hugh Meaney, 59, conspired to favor Pougnet with high-dollar rewards for gaining the mayor's support for the men's redevelopment projects between 2012 and 2014.

All the felony charges against Meaney were dismissed over a year ago. However, he pleaded guilty to a reinstated misdemeanor count of financial conflict in a government contract. He testified for the prosecution during Wessman's trial, and defense attorney Elliot Peters pointed the finger of blame at him.

"Mr. Wessman is not guilty," Peters told jurors. "What you heard was speculation, guesswork and the false testimony of Mr. Meaney."

The attorney characterized the witness as a "dishonest, manipulative person."

Peters affirmed his client took appropriate steps and remained within the bounds of the law to get his projects approved by the Palm Springs City Council.

"Who picked the amounts and the dates (for financial transactions)? Meaney did," the attorney said. "He choreographed and was at the center of this."

He asserted that Wessman was steeped in business affairs, deferring to Meaney to handle smaller details, including direct email correspondence with the mayor.

Zois said Pougnet's $3,605-a-month salary during his two terms was "peanuts" compared to the hefty cash infusions into his bank account facilitated by the two developers.

She argued it was Wessman's influence that landed Pougnet work on the Palm Springs International Film Festival, for which he received $150,000 in 2012. The festival board chairman ended the mayor's consultancy when it didn't net the kind of results the board had wanted.

Zois alleged the developers provided $225,000 in illicit payoffs to the mayor, all to ensure his active support for the downtown renaissance projects, which records allege included construction of the The Dakota, the Desert Fashion Plaza, The Morrison and Vivante.

Pougnet reached a plea agreement directly with the court last month, admitting nine counts of bribery by a public official, eight counts of illicit financial interest in public contracts and one count of conspiracy, as well as no contest to three perjury counts.

All of the men are free on their own recognizance. Meaney's sentencing is tentatively due Monday, but it's expected to be postponed. Pougnet's hearing is set for July 2. Both the ex-mayor and Meaney are expected to receive terms of probation.

The defense underscored how Wessman relied on creative financing to contend with impacts of the Great Recession that started in 2008, seeking what amounted to a "public-private partnership" between Wessman Development Inc. and the city to move forward.

The efforts led to Measure J being put before voters in 2011. It passed, resulting in $43 million in municipal bonds going to the developer's projects, which began in the winter of 2012.

Pougnet, Wessman and Meaney were criminally charged, for the first time, in 2017 and later indicted by a grand jury. The case began as a federal corruption probe until it was turned over to county investigators in 2016.

A judge in December 2020 dismissed all counts against Wessman, characterizing them as baseless, but the charges were reinstated by the Fourth District Court of Appeals in Riverside less than two years later.

Pougnet was in office from 2007 to 2015.

—City News Service