OC to pay $2.75M to settle whistleblower suit against DA Spitzer

Orange County's Board of Supervisors agreed to pay $2.75 million to resolve a whistleblower lawsuit alleging misconduct by District Attorney Todd Spitzer, the latest in a string of settlements and verdicts that have pushed the county's exposure to more than $12 million in liability tied to harassment and retaliation claims.

The payment resolves a 2021 lawsuit brought by former investigator Jennifer Kearns, who alleged Spitzer colluded with defense attorneys to undermine a high-profile rape prosecution against Newport Beach surgeon Dr. Grant Robicheaux and Cerissa Riley, a case that later collapsed when all sex charges were dismissed. The agreement adds to mounting legal costs stemming from internal misconduct claims. Jennifer Kearns v. County of Orange, 30-2021-01194060-CU-OE-NJC, (O.C. Super., Ct., filed April 05, 2021)

Kearns, represented by Huntington Beach attorney Bijan Darvish, alleged she was targeted after refusing to remain silent about conduct she witnessed during the prosecution.

"When Jennifer Kearns stood up for sexual assault victims and refused to stay silent about what she witnessed, Todd Spitzer made her the scapegoat," Darvish said.

Darvish described what he characterized as a coordinated campaign of retaliation, including administrative leave, public accusations of dishonesty, and findings of evidence suppression.

"What was done to Jennifer was a deliberate abuse of authority -- a coordinated effort to discredit, isolate, and ultimately break a career built on decades of integrity, simply because she refused to look the other way," he said.

He pointed to a PowerPoint presentation used in internal proceedings as central to the alleged misconduct.

"Spitzer accused Jennifer of grave misconduct, including dishonesty and the suppression of exculpatory evidence. He handpicked two district attorneys to conduct his de novo review and prepare the now infamous PowerPoint presentation -- a document used to attack her credibility and rewrite the narrative," Darvish said.

Darvish also challenged the independence of the investigation into Kearns' conduct. "Attorney Craig R. Scott was hired to conduct the investigation. Scott had been the personal attorney of Jennifer's chief, Paul Walters, owing him a duty of loyalty -- yet he was permitted to conduct what was supposed to be an impartial investigation," he said.

According to Darvish, internal command staff later criticized that investigation.

"Scott's bias could not be concealed. The Commanders found: 'Mr. Scott did not conduct a complete, thorough, unbiased investigation, and this was reflected in his Final Investigation Report.' They further wrote they 'seriously question his [Craig R. Scott] professionalism and his ability to report facts without animus,'" Darvish said.

He said command staff also identified flaws in the materials used against Kearns.

"The Commanders also concluded that the March 18, 2020, Motion and PowerPoint contained 'numerous unsupported allegations, misstatements, untruths, and factually wrong conclusions.' In other words, the very process used to justify destroying Jennifer's reputation was fundamentally flawed -- yet the damage was done anyway," Darvish said.

Darvish said the treatment of his client was intended to deter others.

"The simple truth is, the administrative leave, branding Jennifer a liar, and accusing her of misconduct was meant to send a message: if you go against Todd Spitzer, this is what will happen. You will be shamed and punished," he said.

He also faulted senior officials for failing to intervene. "Many high-ranking officials knew what was happening, but no one stopped it. That failure was not passive -- it enabled it. When those in power remain silent in the face of wrongdoing, they become part of it. That is why this case matters. When someone inside the system is targeted for telling the truth, it sends a message to everyone else to stay silent. And when silence wins, the public loses," he said.

Darvish called the settlement a measure of vindication. "This settlement is believed to be one of the largest -- if not the largest -- ever reached for retaliation against District Attorney Todd Spitzer. While no settlement can fully erase the pain Jennifer and her family have endured, this outcome is a measure of vindication for a woman who, even at her lowest, never stopped believing in justice -- or in the victims she had dedicated her life to protecting," he said.

The District Attorney's Office disputed Kearns' account and defended its handling of the Robicheaux case. Spokesperson Kimberly Edds said former District Attorney Tony Rackauckas testified the prosecution was pursued in part for political gain.

"Former District Attorney Tony Rackauckas said in a sworn deposition under oath that he believed that the Robicheaux case would generate significant free publicity which would help him get re-elected in 2018, and that it was Deputy District Attorney Mike Carroll and OCDA Investigator Kearns together who told him that there were at least a thousand women on video being sexually assaulted by Robicheaux and his girlfriend -- a statement Rackauckas repeated at a nationally televised press conference just a few weeks before the election. After an exhaustive review of the actual evidence collected by the Newport Beach Police Department and the Orange County District Attorney's Office, that election ruse by Rackauckas was absolutely and patently false," Edds said.

Edds said ethical obligations required dismissal of the charges.

"Under the California rules of Professional Conduct for Prosecutors, when a government prosecutor loses faith in their ability to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt they are ethically prohibited from pursuing those charges," she said.

She said subsequent rulings supported that position. "After five years of protracted litigation to correct Rackauckas' unethical pursuit of the sex charges, what the Spitzer administration said from the very beginning was absolutely true -- the sex charges could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt against Robicheaux and Riley. All the sex charges were either dismissed by the California Attorney General's Office or by an Orange County Superior Court judge," Edds said.

The Kearns settlement comes as the Orange County Board of Supervisors has approved nearly $2 million in additional settlements with prosecutors Amy Tallakson and Clarisse Magtoto -- $995,000 for Magtoto and $988,000 for Tallakson -- over sexual harassment allegations involving former Senior Assistant District Attorney Gary LoGalbo. Total payouts tied to LoGalbo have climbed to nearly $12 million, approaching twice the $6 million global settlement county leaders rejected more than five years ago.

Supervisors Don Wagner and Janet Nguyen have continuously opposed these, and all other settlements tied to LoGalbo's cases. Wagner, a California-licensed attorney, has served as supervisor since 2019; Nguyen, who replaced former supervisor Andrew Do, has served since January 2025.

Wagner, in a statement, said he voted against the settlements because he still believes the amounts are too high. Nguyen did not respond to a request for comment.

In February, supervisors approved $1.85 million to resolve workplace harassment lawsuits brought by Deputy District Attorney Mallory Miller and former prosecutor Shabnum Azizi, now a San Diego assistant city attorney. Miller said at the time she was relieved the matter was ending but believed earlier resolution could have reduced costs.

Claims tied to LoGalbo have already yielded two jury verdicts totaling $6.5 million, two earlier settlements worth another $1.3 million, and, most recently, the Miller and Azizi deals. One case is still moving through the courts. That final outstanding LoGalbo lawsuit, brought by former Orange County public defender Mohammad Abuershaid, accuses LoGalbo of calling him a "terrorist."

The estimated total doesn't include the taxpayer funds county leaders spent hiring outside lawyers to fight the LoGalbo lawsuits.

The most recent verdict came from a San Diego jury, which awarded $3.5 million to Deputy District Attorney Bethel Cope-Vega under California's Fair Employment and Housing Act for sexual harassment and failure to prevent workplace misconduct. *Jane Roe Two v. County of Orange et al., *30-2022-01252445-CU-OE-CJC (San Diego Super. Ct., filed March 30, 2022)

Cope-Vega testified that LoGalbo subjected her to a hostile work environment, including late-night calls and explicit remarks. The verdict followed a $3 million jury award to former senior prosecutor Tracy Miller. Jane Doe v. County of Orange et al., 30-2025-01509844-CU-WT-WJC (O.C. Super. Ct., filed Sept. 8, 2025),

The total exposure in the Miller case towered to about $4.5 million after more than $1.5 million in attorney fees were added.