If indicted Sacramento Councilman Sean Loloee continues to refuse to resign, the City Council might remove him.
Although city officials said Friday it was not possible for the council to remove a member, state law provides an avenue to do so in cases where the officeholder does not live in the district he or she is elected to represent, according to Fred Woocher, a Los Angeles-based election law attorney.
Loloee’s charges are connected with allegations that he hired undocumented immigrants at his Viva Supermarket stores and underpaid them. He was also accused in a federal indictment to have lied on federal grant applications to get COVID-19 relief funds. But, notably, the DOJ also determined Loloee does not live in the North Sacramento district he represents but, outside the county entirely, in Granite Bay.
When The Sacramento Bee in June 2022 reported Loloee did not live in the district, the council did not vote to vacate the seat even though it’s always been an option in state code. Instead, it hired outside attorney Melinda Guzman to conduct an investigation. The investigation, which did not include interviews with neighbors, said Loloee did live in the district, in a Hagginwood house with his employees. The council took no further action.
But now that justice officials has confirmed The Bee’s reporting — and with a year still left on Loloee’s term — the council may be more inclined to act, Woocher said.
“The fact the DOJ said this definitely gives them more cover,” Woocher said. “It provides them with a basis for making it clear that this is not an arbitrary decision on their part. That it’s based in fact and law.”
At least one council member is ready to vote to remove her colleague from the dais.
“The indictment of (Loloee) on numerous serious charges goes against the ethical standards expected of public officials,” Councilwoman Mai Vang said on social media Friday. “These disappointing allegations, compromise his ability to effectively represent our city. The residents of District 2 deserve better. I strongly urge Mr. Loloee to do the right thing and uphold the integrity of his office by resigning. If he does not, mayor/council must take next steps to remove him.”
Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, who’s met with Loloee since the grand jury handed up the 25-count indictment, hinted that he might resign as soon as Tuesday.
“I am meeting with Councilmember Loloee on Tuesday,” Steinberg said Saturday. “I am confident he will make the right decision for himself, for District 2, and for the city.”
The remaining seven council members did not return messages seeking comment Saturday.
Loloee’s residency has been in question since he was virtually sworn into council in 2020 from his wife’s $1.4 million Granite Bay property, then lied about it. He has maintained he lives in a Hagginwood house within his district with his employees — where 911 calls for guns and parties are frequent, and over a dozen vehicles and a mini-excavator are parked, ongoing violations of city code.
The council’s next regularly scheduled meeting is scheduled Jan. 9. But the council could legally call a special meeting anytime before then voting to vacate the seat if it wanted to do so, Woocher said.
The mayor and city manager, Howard Chan, both can place items on agendas and call for a special meeting.
If the council removed Loloee, it would be effective immediately, Woocher said. The nine members would then appoint a resident from district to serve until the term expires in December 2024. Loloee also would have an option to appeal the action.
It’s unlikely the board would appoint one of the nine people running for the seat in March to not give any candidates an advantage. Loloee, who was elected in 2020, said previously he was not seeking re-election.
