New Santa Ana | Category Archives: Michele Martinez

Updated: Man killed and two women wounded when shot in a parked car in DTSA

Posted on August 13, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Anaheim, Crime, Michele Martinez, Santa Ana 18 Comments

Aaron Johnathan Chavez

UPDATED: SAPD detectives arrest 23-year-old Dustin Sean Ross McDonald yesterday evening in a car stop near his residence in Garden Grove. Charges are pending, case has been submitted to the District Attorney’s office for filing. Charges will be murder (187), two count of attempt murder (664/187) and special circumstances enhancement (190.2) and weapons enhancements (12022.5)

Aaron Johnathan Chavez, a 23-year-old from Anaheim, was killed and two women were injured late Tuesday when another man came up to a parked car they were sitting in and fired 10 to 12 shots at them, according to Santa Ana Police, according to the OC Weekly. Continue reading→

Councilwoman Martinez uses city funds to promote what looks like a campaign event

Posted on August 7, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Civic Affairs, Entertainment, Michele Martinez, Politics, Santa Ana 5 Comments

Santa Ana Council Member Michele Martinez used the City of Santa Ana’s public relations department to send out a notice today about her “Annual Community Address” on August 27, 2014 at 6:00 p.m. at the Santa Ana Senior Center.

Martinez is up for re-election in November and she should not be using public resources to promote herself. This is quite obviously a campaign event for her. She ought to be paying for the event promotion herself!

Martinez claims she will use this event to talk about new projects in Santa Ana but you can rest assured it will be nothing more than a chance for Martinez to promote herself on our dime. Continue reading→

Why did Lou Correa pull out of the Santa Ana Mayor’s race?

Posted on August 6, 2014 by Editor Posted in 2014 Elections, Alfredo Amezcua, George Collins, Lupe Moreno, Michele Martinez, Miguel Angel Briseno, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Roman Reyna, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 9 Comments

State Senator Lou Correa has opted not to run for Mayor of Santa Ana. Why did he get cold feet?

“After a review of various factors, I have decided not to run for Mayor at this time,” Correa (D-Santa Ana) stated in an email to a Voice of OC reporter. “I was deeply touched by all of the calls of encouragement that I received from folks from all walks of life, and all across party lines. I thank you all,” according to the Voice of OC.

Well that statement tells us nothing at all. What I heard from several inside sources was that Correa didn’t think he could beat the longtime incumbent, Mayor Miguel Pulido. Correa has enough money in his vast campaign war chest that I would be willing to wager that he conducted a poll and the results were no bueno. Pulido, apparently, is still the man in Santa Ana. Continue reading→

Ward 2 Council candidate Velasquez to host a fundraiser on 7/30

Posted on July 23, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Entertainment, Michele Martinez, Mirna Velasquez, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Mirna Velasquez, a candidate for Ward 2 on the Santa Ana City Council, is holding a fundraiser on Wednesday, July 30, 2014, at 6:30 pm, at El Calamar, located at 315 W. 17th St., in Santa Ana. The event is hosted by Hugo Camacho.

Ruben Mata, a trainer, author, & coach, will be speaking at this event.

RSVP to Monica Leyva at 714-276-7050 or electvelasquez2014@gmail.com. Continue reading→

Updated: Martinez now facing two opponents in Ward 2 this November

Posted on July 17, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Gilad Salmon, Michele Martinez, Mirna Velasquez, Politics, Santa Ana 2 Comments

Santa Ana Councilwoman Michele Martinez has drawn another competitor for her Council seat, in Ward 2. A fellow named Gilad Salmon has pulled papers to run for her seat. You can check out his Facebook page here.

Salmon contacted me with additional information about him and his campaign. He says he lives south of First St. but he values Downtown Santa Ana and considers it a great asset as he feels it helps to bring more revenue to the city’s coffers. He also said that he is not a friend of Martinez and that he is not running in order to dilute the opposition vote. As such I would expect him to pull away male votes and votes from disaffected residents of the Artists Village who aren’t overly happy with her leadership. Continue reading→

The Santa Ana City Council runs for cover as they reject their own raise proposal

Posted on July 15, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Ballot Measures, Civic Affairs, David Benavides, Lou Correa, Marijuana, Michele Martinez, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 8 Comments

The Santa Ana City Council unanimously rejected their own ballot measure proposal, which was Agenda Item # 65A, to give themselves what amounted to a 700% pay raise. We have been hammering them on this issue for weeks – even posting an article about how much this Council really makes. I surmise that they finally realized this was going to kill their re-election campaigns. Council Members Michele Martinez and David Benavides as well as Mayor Pro Tem Sal Tinajero are all up for re-election this November.

The ballot measure proposal they killed included revisions to the Code of Ethics and to their own campaign finance rules. Remarkably the Council was proposing to accept campaign contributions from residents and business owners who were asking for licenses or permits.

I think the gorilla in the room tonight was the possibility that State Senator Lou Correa will be running for Mayor of Santa Ana. This rumor has now been confirmed by multiple sources and I believe he will be running regardless of what Mayor Miguel Pulido decides to do. You can bet that Correa will win and I am certain that he will find candidates to oppose the Council Members who are up for re-election if they don’t start getting in line. Continue reading→

Three Council Members seek to ban medical marijuana collectives

Posted on July 12, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Angelica Amezcua, Civic Affairs, Crime, David Benavides, Drugs, Marijuana, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Roman Reyna, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 25 Comments

Three Santa Ana City Council Members, including Michele Martinez, David Benavides and Angie Amezcua have placed an 85A item on the agenda for this Tuesday’s City Council meeting, regarding medical marijuana.

These Council Members would like to place a measure on the November General Election ballot that would allow voters to vote against the sale of medical marijuana by collectives/dispensaries. Continue reading→

Ward 2 Council candidate Velasquez to host a campaign fundraiser on 6/25

Posted on June 24, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Michele Martinez, Mirna Velasquez, Politics, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Mirna Velasquez, a candidate this year for Santa Ana’s City Council, in Ward 2, is hosting a campaign event on Wednesday, June 25, 2013, from 6 to 8 pm, at Original Mike’s, at 100 S. Main St., in Santa Ana.

Velasquez is challenging longtime Council incumbent Michele Martinez, who has admitted in the past to selling drugs when she was a teenager growing up in Santa Ana. Martinez ran for the 69th Assembly District in 2012, coming in almost last with just 16% of the vote, according to Smart Voter. Martinez spent over $200K for those results, according to the CA Secretary of State. Click here to see which special interests donated to her campaign.

Here is Mirna’s bio, from her website: Continue reading→

Pulido lawyers up – should the Council Members do so as well?

Posted on May 29, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Civic Affairs, Crime, David Benavides, Jose Solorio, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 9 Comments

Mayor Miguel Pulido

Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido has received at least $25,000 in contributions toward a legal defense fund that he established in January as he is being investigated by the state’s political watchdog agency, according to the OC Register.

The “Miguel Pulido Legal Defense Fund” was set up in January, shortly after City Attorney Sonia Carvalho began investigating a real estate swap involving Pulido that ethics experts say looks like a bribe and could have violated state conflict of interest laws, according to the Voice of OC.

My sources tell he that a few of the Santa Ana Council Members may want to set up legal defense funds of their own. One pajarito in particular told me last week that the FBI is looking at conflict of interest by the Council Members with regard to real estate development on Bristol and Seventeenth and at the property formerly known as the Honer Plaza which is now called the Bristol Marketplace. Continue reading→

Crime is increasing but our City Council Members say it’s an anomaly

Posted on May 19, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Crime, David Benavides, Michele Martinez, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 10 Comments

Santa Ana’s City Council Members are finally reacting to the increasing violence and crime in our city – but their reaction is not what anyone might have expected. In a city where the Council Members have in the past led marches against violence and conducted town hall meetings to discuss the issue, our elected officials are now ducking and covering.

Consider what several of the Council Members told the O.C. Register after five shootings and three fatalities in the past month: Continue reading→

Michele Martinez named SCAG 2VP while luxuriating in Indian Wells

Posted on May 13, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Michele Martinez, Santa Ana 8 Comments

The Renaissance Esmeralda Indian Wells Resort & Spa where Michele Martinez had a good time at

The Renaissance Esmeralda Indian Wells Resort & Spa where Michele Martinez got to hang out

Community: SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS NAMES SANTA ANA COUNCILWOMAN MICHELE MARTINEZ AS VICE PRESIDENT

SANTA ANA (May 14, 2014) – The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) has named Santa Ana Council Member Michele Martinez as 2nd Vice President. The announcement was made at the Renaissance Esmeralda Indian Wells Resort in Indian Wells in front of more than 800 attendees at SCAG’s 49th Annual Regional Conference “Partnering for Prosperity: Technology’s Impact on Mobility & Opportunity.”

The Southern California Association of Governments or SCAG is the nation’s largest metropolitan planning organization, representing six counties, 191 cities and more than 18 million residents. The organization undertakes a variety of planning and policy initiatives to encourage a more sustainable Southern California now and in the future. Continue reading→

Councilwoman Martinez will face a serious challenger in the Nov. Election

Posted on May 10, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Michele Martinez, Mirna Velasquez, Politics, Santa Ana 5 Comments

Santa Ana Councilwoman Michele Martinez was not challenged when she last ran for re-election in 2010. She got just over 34K votes in that race according to Smart Voter. But there were over 43K votes cast in that year’s Santa Ana Mayoral contest, again according to Smart Voter. That means 9K Santa Ana voters simply could not stomach voting for Martinez. So they didn’t vote for anyone in Ward 2 that year.

This year Santa Ana’s voters will have a chance to vote for someone other than Martinez in Ward 2. She is being challenged by Mirna Velasquez. And Martinez better take her opponent seriously. Continue reading→

Santa Ana Council Member Martinez to host a campaign reception on May 15

Posted on May 5, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Entertainment, Michele Martinez, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The Friends of Santa Ana Council Member Michele Martinez, invite you to attend a Fundraising Reception for Councilwoman Michele Martinez, Ward 2.

Diego’s in Downtown Santa Ana
224 E. 3rd St., Santa Ana, CA 92701
Thursday, May 15, 2014
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Continue reading→

Updated: Failed Democratic candidate stalking and trolling woman candidates on Facebook

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2010 Elections, 2012 Elections, 2014 Elections, Cecilia Iglesias, Democratic Party, Julio Perez, Michele Martinez, Politics, Tom Daly, Women 2 Comments

Tom Daly and Francisco Barragan

When SAUSD School Board Member Cecilia Iglesias ran for Congress back in 2010, she gathered over 10,000 signatures so that she could qualify for the ballot as an independent candidate. While she did not prevail in the election she showed us all that she was a viable candidate in Santa Ana, in a race that featured the powerhouse that is Democratic U.S. Representative Loretta Sanchez and a former State Assemblyman, Van Tran, who was at the time still a dominant player in central Orange County.

Iglesias confirmed this when she ran for the SAUSD School Board in 2012, this time as Republican. While at the time I was unsure that she would do well in our city as a member of the GOP, she proved me wrong by becoming the top vote-getter in that election – she garnered more votes than two incumbents, Rob Richardson and Jose Alfredo Hernandez. That surely was a wake-up call for them as well.

Now Iglesias is challenging a Democrat, Tom Daly, who was elected to the 69th Assembly District in 2012 when three Latino Democrats split the Hispanic vote in that year’s Open Primary. Those candidates included Santa Ana Councilwoman Michele Martinez; labor organizer Julio Perez and an accountant named Francisco Barragan. While Martinez is still in power and Perez recently got appointed to a top labor post, Barragan has resorted to stalking candidates he doesn’t like, on their Facebook pages. Continue reading→

The L.A. Times piles on Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido

Posted on February 24, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, David Benavides, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Santa Ana 7 Comments

Santa Ana’s longtime mayor is under investigation for his relationship with the owner of the Santa Ana location of NAPA Auto Parts, to whom the mayor sold a piece of downtown property and then voted in favor of giving an exclusive city contract, according to the L.A. Times.

We have heard all this before from the Voice of OC. Here is what it boils down to – an auto parts business owner in Santa Ana swapped a home in Westminster for a parking lot owned by Mayor Miguel Pulido’s father. Pulido later sold the home for a $197,000 profit. Continue reading→