In the end, the Venezuelan telenovela actress who remains married to suspended Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi did fly back to San Francisco to be a witness in his Ethics Commission hearing on Wednesday. Did she seem annoyed at having to make the trip and visibly angry at the attorneys questioning her? Yeah, kinda. And with that, the theater of this Mirkarimi saga moves into its third and final act.
The Chron reports that Eliana Lopez "arrived at City Hall in a black limousine" and that she was "a bundle of character" on the witness stand, shooting daggers at Deputy City Attorney Peter Keith and rolling her eyes at some of his questions too. They had a little witty banter, and since this isn't a real trial that seems to have been allowed. Her testimony continues today, and after this the Ethics Commission won't reconvene until August 16, at which point they should have their recommendation for the Board of Supervisors as to whether Mirkarimi should keep his job.
Apparently Mirkarimi's attorneys have already filed an objection to part of Lopez's declaration in the case, but we're not clear on what that's about. We're also not clear where Lopez and son Theo are staying while they're in town a stay-away order remains in place preventing Mirkarimi from having contact with his wife and son, which Lopez and her attorney Paula Canny say they are going to try to get lifted by a judge on Friday.
Also testifying yesterday was Mirkarimi's campaign manager Linette Haynes, who was a pivotal player in the days following the alleged domestic abuse incident, texting and emailing with Lopez about whether she was going to go to the police. She has denied trying to dissuade neighbor Ivory Madison from going to the authorities.
Meanwhile, the Commission is deciding today whether to subpoena any witnesses to determine if Mayor Ed Lee perjured himself on the witness stand with regard to having allegedly offered Mirkarimi a new job, via a third party, if he agreed to resign back in March.
[Chron]
