Will the Fresno City Council president get his criminal case dismissed? He thinks so
Fresno City Council President Nelson Esparza faced a setback Thursday in his fight to dismiss criminal charges against him, including one felony charge for attempted extortion.
Another judge presided over Esparza’s arraignment hearing on Thursday because Fresno Superior Court Judge Jon Kapetan was absent. Esparza’s attorney, Mark Coleman, entered a not-guilty plea on his client’s behalf.
Esparza hoped Kapetan would hear a motion to dismiss the case on Thursday. Instead, Judge Alvin Harrell presided over the arraignment and agreed to set a pre-preliminary hearing for Nov. 2. A preliminary hearing, where the judge reviews evidence to determine whether the case should go to trial, was scheduled for Nov. 10.
“Obviously, we’re disappointed that we’re experiencing this two-week delay here,” Esparza told reporters outside the courthouse Thursday. “I was really looking forward to bringing this to a resolution today. But, you know, we’ll be back here in two weeks, and I will look forward to bringing it to a speedy resolution.”
The courtroom was packed with Esparza’s supporters, including his partner, mother, current and former staffers, and Councilmembers Miguel Arias and Tyler Maxwell.
Coleman said he and other attorneys on Esparza’s case were surprised by Kapetan’s absence on Thursday. He said he and Esparza hope the motion to dismiss the case will be heard before the preliminary hearing.
Before Esparza’s initial appearance in court last month, his attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the case, arguing the conversation the case is based on was confidential and attorney-client privileged.
The Fresno County District Attorney’s Office filed the charges against Esparza in July. The complaint alleges Esparza threatened the employment of former Fresno City Attorney Doug Sloan, who later left his post for a similar job in Santa Monica.
Esparza’s colleague, Councilmember Garry Bredefeld, first made the allegation publicly in May. Esparza sued Bredefeld for defamation but later dropped the case.
According to an affidavit filed earlier this summer, Sloan told investigators Esparza threatened to fire him if he did work for councilmembers outside the council majority. The conversation between Sloan and Esparza occurred in late April, one day after a closed session meeting in which Sloan’s job performance was reviewed.
Councilmembers Esparza, Miguel Arias, Tyler Maxwell, and Esmeralda Soria, all Democrats, often form the majority vote on action items and are broadly considered the council majority. Councilmember Garry Bredefeld is the lone Republican on the council, and Councilmembers Luis Chavez and Mike Karbassi, also Democrats, sometimes cast the swing votes.
This story was originally published October 27, 2022 at 11:12 AM.