In a room full of students at Cal State L.A. last week, a young man told Los Angeles City Council candidate Ysabel Jurado that he supports the idea of abolishing the police and wanted to know where she stood on the issue.
Jurado’s reply, which included the phrase “F— the police, that’s how I see ‘em,” drew sharp criticism this week from parts of the Eastside, where she is seeking to unseat Councilmember Kevin de León.
On Wednesday, De León confirmed that Martin Perez, one of his staffers, is the Cal State L.A. student who posed the question.
De León declined to say whether Perez, who handles constituent services in his office, made the recording of Jurado’s remarks, which first appeared Monday on the website of the Westside Current. But he commended his aide, saying Jurado has been sidestepping questions about police abolition.
“He got the answer that we’ve been asking [during] five consecutive debates as to why she wants to abolish the police,” he said. “And she confirmed it with a very vulgar and crude “F—the police.”
Jurado’s remarks at the Cal State L.A. meet-and-greet have delivered an unexpected jolt to the campaign for the 14th District, which takes in all or part of downtown, Boyle Heights, El Sereno and Eagle Rock. De León has been struggling to emerge from a two-year-old scandal over a different recording — one that featured crude and racist remarks — and is facing a fierce opponent in Jurado, a tenant rights attorney who has never run for office before.
Councilmember Monica Rodriguez labeled Jurado’s use of the phrase immature, while Councilmember Bob Blumenfield called it “incredibly offensive.” The Los Angeles Police Protective League, which endorsed De León and represents about 8,800 officers, is now airing 30-second attack ads criticizing Jurado.
“Her plan for public safety starts with an F-bomb,” the ad states.
In recent weeks, Jurado has pushed back on assertions that she intends to defund the police, while also arguing that too much money is being spent on the LAPD, putting the city on the brink of a financial crisis.
On Monday, she downplayed her use of “F— the police,” saying it was “just a lyric” from a rap song. Although she didn’t say which song, her wording parallels parts of N.W.A’s “F— Tha Police” and Kanye West’s “All Falls Down.”
Jurado declined to comment about Perez on Wednesday. But she described the police union ad as “just noise.”
“Our community is focused on how they’re going to put food on the table and pay their rent on time — not song lyrics,” she said in a statement. “That’s why we’re more determined than ever to lift up their needs and be their champion in City Hall. This campaign is about delivering results, not distractions.”
Perez declined an interview request from The Times. In the recording of the meet-and-greet, he began his question by noting that he lives in the council district and is “a punk from East L.A.”
More than a dozen people attended the event, and several recorded different questions and answers, said Elliot Avila, a Cal State L.A. student who took part in the discussion. Nevertheless, Avila said he is convinced that Perez made the recording of Jurado’s remarks.
“He’s the one who claims to be a police abolitionist, and he’s clearly working for Kevin de León,” he said. “The only person with the motive to do that would be him.”
Avila, who plans to vote for Jurado, said her full response to the abolition question was actually “centrist.” After using the phrase “F— the police,” Jurado pointed out that some of her constituents want more police and said the LAPD needs to focus on violent crime.
“She was meeting [Perez] where he was at, but then walking back to a more centrist, pragmatic position,” Avila said. “I would have liked for her to go much harder against the police.”
Perez has been an aide to De León for about a year and half, according to his LinkedIn profile. He founded and managed a clothing company in the “vibrant East L.A. punk scene” while also working as a security guard, the profile says.
Perez has been volunteering for De León’s reelection campaign, door-knocking, phone banking and creating “art for tote bags to be used by other staffers,” his profile states.
Jurado identified herself as an abolitionist — someone who supports the “abolition of police and the “prison industrial complex” — in a questionnaire she submitted to the Democratic Socialists of America-Los Angeles.
De León has assailed that stance, saying it would leave neighborhoods from downtown to Boyle Heights vulnerable to violent crime. Earlier this week, he described Jurado’s use of the F-bomb as “irresponsible,” saying wealthy neighborhoods will always have the ability to hire security personnel.
“Poor neighborhoods, low-income neighborhoods, neighborhoods that struggle every single day to make ends meet, they deserve public safety as well,” he told KTLA.
Jurado has pushed back on the idea that she plans to defund the LAPD, saying she wants officers to focus on gangs, drugs and violent crime.
On the campaign trail, she has also argued that the city’s approach to public safety “isn’t working,” saying that more money should be devoted to street lighting, sidewalk repairs and youth programs.
