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Homeless director accused of pocketing donations

March 18, 2013

Dee Torres-Hill

KEEPING THEM HOMELESS

By KAREN VELIE, JOSH FRIEDMAN and DANIEL BLACKBURN

(Editor’s note: This is part of an ongoing series about San Luis Obispo County Homeless Services and the nonprofits managing the program.)

Homeless Services Coordinator Dee Torres routinely took gift cards intended for the needy and homeless for her own use, a number of former homeless service employees and ex-boyfriends say.

Torres kept the gift cards in her purse to use for family outings, gas, restaurants and Christmas presents for her friends, Ralph Almirol, the father of Torres’ middle child, said. Almirol said they especially enjoyed gift cards from Tom’s Toys on Higuera Street.

“We would give them to the kids,” Almirol said. “She used them like they were hers.”

Torres’ Homeless Services program comes under the umbrella of Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo (CAPSLO). Employees of both the Prado Day Center and the Maxine Lewis Shelter say that every Christmas, the homeless are remembered by the public with thousands of dollars in gift cards being donated for gas, groceries, restaurants and retail stores. All such donations are to be given to the homeless.

Almirol asked Torres about the cards and the homeless who were supposed to receive them, he said.

“People would give a lot of gift cards,” Almirol said. “I asked her once if she could get in trouble, she said there was no accounting for what is given, and most of them don’t deserve it.”

Other former boyfriends confirmed the allegations, though they wanted to remain unnamed because they are afraid that Torres or government officials will retaliate. Torres is engaged to San Luis Obispo County Supervisor Adam Hill. At least one of Torres’ former husbands relied on his marriage to her to obtain legal resident status, CAPSLO staffers and Almirol said.

Friends of Prado President Roy Rawlings and Torres did not respond to comment requests.

Workers at the homeless shelters said that apart from the rare occasion when a client would do chores such as painting an office, the cards were not provided to the homeless.

“We never saw the gift cards given out,” said Kathy Marti, a former three-year employee of CAPSLO. “Once the gift cards came in she would take them.”

Marti said she quit in 2010 after battling for better treatment of the homeless.

“I was so disillusioned because I never saw any progress,” Marti said. “When I first started working there I loved it, I felt I could move heaven and earth.”

More than a dozen former and current employees of CAPSLO said that Torres refused to give donated goods to the homeless unless they would do chores for her.

“There was so much stuff coming in,” said Carina Salazar, a former CAPSLO employee. “There was all kinds of stuff donated. A lot of stuff got tossed. We went over to the (CAPSLO) main office to complain, but no one would listen.”

Almirol said Torres would divvy up the best donations for family and friends.

“We would go through the donations and pick out the best toys for our kids,” Almirol said. “She would give other stuff to her friends.”

Employees and clients also question CAPSLO’s rule that homeless individuals must provide 50 to 70 percent of their income to CAPSLO in order to guarantee a bed at the shelter.

Richard Walker and his family turned to CAPSLO after they became homeless. CAPSLO required the Walkers, who were on welfare, to pay about $500 a month in cash to the family’s case manager, Walker said.

Despite paying CAPSLO approximately $500 a month, the Walkers still struggled to get necessities, such as baby diapers, from Torres, he said.

“We had to fight with them to buy things for our baby like diapers or rash cream,” Walker said. “We told Dee (Torres) we needed diapers. She told us to get diapers through them, but she would only give us three at a time and then she would get angry when we asked for more.”

After spending about a year and a half in the shelter on case management, the family decided to cancel so they would have enough money to purchase diapers and other necessities, Walker said. But Walker said his family did not receive all of the money they had signed over to case management.

“She gave us most of our money back in a check. She kept the $25 a month they charged us for holding on to it,” he said.

By opting out of case management, the family chose to take their chances on getting beds each night at the Maxine Lewis Homeless Shelter.

CAPSLO requires clients at the Maxine Lewis Homeless Shelter to be waiting outside by 5 p.m. though they may not enter the shelter until 6 p.m. Homeless clients not on case management draw a ticket out of a bucket for a chance to stay the night.

One night, the Walkers drew the right number, but CAPSLO staff told them they still could not stay at the shelter because their eight-month-old had pink eye, Walker said. They asked Torres to provide them a motel voucher. But Torres told the family they could not stay in a motel because they had a car in which to sleep.

“She said ‘no hotel, you have a car,’” Walker said. “Then she gave a hotel room to a man who had just had Lasik surgery.”

Joette Sunshine, a four-year employee of CAPSLO who has left her job, said she was working that night and witnessed the events. Sunshine said she was distressed that a family of four with a sick child was not provided a hotel room, while a man who could afford an expensive eye procedure was.

“Part of the deal not to be able to get a hotel room was if you had a vehicle and a certain income,” Sunshine said. “This man had more than $1,200 a month in income and a van. The motel money was there for people who needed it, yet the Walkers were denied a hotel room.”

Several years ago, the Walkers got into housing on their own, though they said that CAPSLO lists them as one of their housing “success” stories.

 

Keeping Them Homeless, the series.


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Do not let Dee Torres get away with the terrible things she does and is doing. Someone should ask why she has a safe under her office floor. She is abusive to the public, employees and homeless alike. Biz please wake up! You have so many wonderful people that work under you and you let someone like Dee continue to do what she does. Biz not everyone can be wrong…..open your ears little bit. Check the complaints by employees again and realize you have lost many employees that were very good in the homeless services department. Years and years of devotion to the program.


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QUOTING ALASKA64: “Someone should ask why she has a safe under her office floor.


!!!!! Curiouser and curiouser.


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Does anyone have any info on the CAPSLO board meeting tonight? I had to work or I would have been there!


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The main story is rather disturbing as it shatters our faith in the integrity in local government on so many levels. The 280 or so comments on this story is even more disturbing however as almost every comment to the main story revealed a heightened sense of alarm regarding the public’s perception of the county social service system. Too bad it has come to this in San Luis Obispo County and the City of San Luis Obispo!!


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I think there are so many problems in our Social Service system in the county. I remember years ago, when working for the Women’s Shelter Program of San Luis Obispo, at the time they wouldn’t admit or provide services to men. I asked the Director, “How can the Women’s Shelter of San Luis Obispo accept public monies to run the program, but only offer help to 1/2 the population?” I was fired and guess what? They now offer services to men and women. I guess they thought better of it, but it’s the “us” and “them” mentality. I remember the Director said, “women started this shelter for women, let men go open their own shelter. She forgot one thing, public money is used to fund the program and her opinion on what sex qualifies for services doesn’t matter. Biz Knew the Women’s Shelter only offered services to women and excluded men. Did she do anything? No. Did she say anything? probably not. Did she know, I’m sure. She and Mrs. Kennedy are good friends. So, does Biz know of the wrong doings of her peer Dee, perhaps, I wouldn’t doubt it.


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What would be REALLY disturbing, is if CAPSLO ignors everything that is happening!!


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Well, it seems like they’ve done a darned fine job of ignoring it so far.


They are going to have to re-do their logo to an ostrich with its head in the sand.


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I would like to make an apology to everyone especially to ECHO for an erroneous post that I placed on this thread a few days ago. I stated that ECHO no longer runs our North County shelter but that it is run by CAPSLO. That is wrong and I do apologize. The initial information had been “adamantly expressed ” to me more than once by a person who I have always known to be absolutely credible but they were absolutely wrong about this item and I apologize for perpetuating this false information, without making any further excuses for myself for having done so.


There were previous individuals who were thought to be employees of the N county shelter including the popular Ms Nevarez who had worked at the shelter for many years. They were paid by CAPSLO and fired by Dee Torres, however they turned out to be on premise case managers and not actually employees of the N county shelter. ECHO is in fact independent from CAPSLO apart from the case management.


With that said, citizens and businesses should never give donations intended for the N county shelter to CAPSLO. CAPSLO does list the N County shelter as one of their “projects” but any funds trusted to them for this purpose most likely will not make their way to the N county shelter or ECHO.


Again I apologize for my earlier misstatement.


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How can CAPSLO list them as one of theirs if they are not and maybe it’s time for ECHO to clarify that they are independent and have no association with CAPSLO’s Homeless Services. They should also insist CAPSLO remove them as being part of their Organization. ECHO may find an increase in supporters of the North County Shelter.


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I can only assume that the ECHO shelter is considered a CAPSLO project (by CAPSLO) because of the case management services they provide.


But then, the A-Town pantry was also listed as a CAPSLO project and CAPSLO has absolutely nothing to do with the pantry. The pantry is 100% run by the AFA church and is funded by 100% donations from the church member’s, public and local retailers. Again, CAPSLO has nothing at all to do with the pantry and never has had anything to do with it. Go figure, I guess it looked good on paper when CAPSLO was looking to take more funding from the other non-profits. Seriously……………..


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Does CAPSLO provide case management services? You stated there “were” case managers but they were fired by Dee Torres. Are you a member of ECHO?


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Yes, CAPSLO provides all the case management for North County. They have their case managers work on premise up here and the N County shelter provides them an office. When I said “were” case managers, I was referring to the ones who Dee fired. One of those managers was very popular with the homeless and even the people who worked at the shelter. It would appear that if a case manager is liked, then she isn’t working up to Dee’s standards.


No I am not a ECHO member, I am a donator and I volunteer at the shelter through an outside local group that prepares dinners for the homeless at the shelter. Many groups cook and provide dinners for the shelter up here.


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Thank you for responding. This story breaks my heart, I find it sad that Ms Torres would fire workers who were well liked. I agree when you stated if a case manager is well liked they arent up to Dee’s standards. obviously if they were liked they treated the homeless well! Unlike Ms Torres, who told her ex, they arent deserving! Let’s see how long it takes for Ms Torres or one of hers to come back with a nasty remark about this former case manager!


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Perhaps making such a declaration would at least stem the flow of contributors who no longer trust their contributed monies to anything associated with CAPSLO, including Dee Torres and Biz Steinberg.


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I think it is time for ECHO to do much more than just clarify things.


They need to cancel the contract with CAPSLO and do what ECHO is supposed to be doing: addressing the needs of the homeless population in north county.


This is their FIRST priority. Playing patty-cake with Dee Torres, IMO, is no where near the top of the list.


Every day that goes by that ECHO continues to contract out case management to CAPSLO is a day that ECHO’s client population stands a high chance of being abused and their money stolen.


Yet ECHO remains silent. WTFC?


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QUOTING CINDY: “There were previous individuals who were thought to be employees of the N county shelter including the popular Ms Nevarez who had worked at the shelter for many years. They were paid by CAPSLO and fired by Dee Torres, however they turned out to be on premise case managers and not actually employees of the N county shelter. ECHO is in fact independent from CAPSLO apart from the case management.


Cindy, I appreciate your correction and apology.


However, I think case management is a HUGE part of homeless services. Just look at how Family Ties was able to corruptly manipulate the finances of those she managed.


So, whether or not CAPSLO and ECHO were independent, ECHO turned over to CAPSLO/Dee Torres a vitally important part of the homeless services in north county which were under ECHO’s control.


I would find it hard to be believe that ECHO was not aware of the CAPSLO corruption bubbling up like a cesspool-gone-wild.


I’m not saying that ECHO isn’t a good organization. I’m saying that I question their judgment in handing over to the likes of CAPSLO such an important part of the homeless services ECHO provided.


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I agree with you.


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Cindy, I hate to say this, because you seem like a very caring and giving person and you have a high opinion of ECHO….


Nevertheless, I have to say I think ECHO has serious credibility issues due to its handing over the case management for north county clients to CAPSLO.


“The fish rots from the head first,” as the old saying goes. However, in the end, the entire fish becomes rotten when the head is rotten.


Get my drift? For ECHO to contract out such an integral part of homeless services to CAPSLO, it is basically contaminating every function of ECHO.


We’ve read and heard about the petty vindictive crap CAPSLO pulls on its clients, and the fraud it perpetrates, stealing money from the clients it is supposed to be serving.


ECHO has to know what is going on with CAPSLO, yet they open up their homeless clients to the having their funds withheld and squandered, and with a horrible appearance of the intent of keeping the clients homeless so CAPSLO can continue to commit fraud against them?


If you know anyone in ECHO, I would urge you to have a sit-down with them. Remind them that, as the public sees it, “Birds of a feather flock together,” and ECHO is flying in the wrong flock.


ECHO will continue to be seen as being the same as CAPSLO as long as they have the guts of the program, case management, contracted out to CAPSLO. North county and its homeless clients deserve better than that. And, certainly, the benefactors of ECHO deserve better use of the funds and resources they contribute than having the likes of Dee Torres going on shopping sprees using cash gift cards supposed to be for the clients.


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Mary, The N County shelter is run much better than what happens down in SLO. The history of ECHO is exemplary and they (the ECHO founders and their volunteers) have demonstrated the epitome of altruistic service through out the years in my opinion.


Also, In my opinion, ECHO is between a rock and a hard place when it comes to funding for case management. They don’t receive the funding that CAPSLO receives for homeless services. The city of Atascadeo doesn’t have the sort of funds that the city of SLO has to designate for shelter services and (although it is recognized that the N County serves as many homeless as the SLO shelter serves) the county grants the greatest part of the designated homeless funds budget to CAPSLO. Why I don’t know.


In short, case management when competently administrated for the “sole benefit of the homeless” can be highly beneficial, ECHO is doing the best that they can and it’s my understanding that they don’t foist the CAPSLO CM on the clients but I could be wrong on that. Perhaps they would receive no county funding at all if they didn’t follow the lead of Torres and the CAPSLO program and utilize the case managers that are designated to them by CAPSLO. Unless an ECHO representative chimes in, I guess it’s hard to say what their position on all this is.


In the mean time, my concern is for the homeless and resolving this issues so that we can all get back to trusting that our donations are utilized as intended. I believe that we can trust ECHO. I DO.


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P.S. I want to add that regardless of the N County case management being administered through CAPSLO, all donations to ECHO are controlled by ECHO. Continue to donate to ECHO but do it directly. Giving $1000.00 in Von’s gift cards to CAPSLO and saying that half are to go to N County can’t be trusted. It was reported that the $1000 in gift cars that were donated at Christmas with the above instructions never got to the N County ECHO shelter for distribution.


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Everybody has to make up their own mind about whether or not they want to donate to a shelter organization that allows CAPSLO to do their case management.


It was CAPSLO’s case management that got Cliff Anderson declared mentally incompetent, without him ever knowing.


How do you know that the ECHO clients in north county haven’t already been declared mentally incompetent? Perhaps had burial plots purchased for them by their case management?


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What CAPSLO’s case management did (and most likely is still doing) to their SLO clients went far beyond how they were treated at the shelter.


They stole their money, and fixed things so it was harder for their clients to exist the homeless population.


Remember Cliff Anderson? Think of him multiplied by how ever many clients ECHO has in north county. THAT is the potential.


And ECHO’s silence speaks louder than the words that cannot bring itself to say.


I understand you trust ECHO. But there are people posting here on the board who also still trust CAPSLO. Do you see what I mean?


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I was a client in North County during the time of Ms Nevarez and her case managers. We were NEVER told we had to save money with anyone. I was given an option to open my own account or make money orders made out to myself , it was a suggestion not a requirement.I know for a fact they did not use family ties to save money because Ronnie didn’t think people should have to pay to save their own money.


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Re: “nasty comment about Dee’s ex”…


It sounds more like Adam Hill’s brand of nincompoopery to me.


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Over the last couple of days I have done some more research on Community Action Partnerships and I’m getting a pretty good picture of a administratively top heavy organization that aggressively fights not just for funding streams but AGAINST any private forms of charity. Those 6 figure salary people, as well as any supervisors and councilman than have been touting this program and providing it funding, along with the federal government, ALL have a vested interet in maintaining tight control over this “market” despite the fact that it is teaming with corruption and waste.


Now the whole Dan Du Vaul saga, and how the county went after him, makes total sense.,, well beyond the whole neighboring landowner complaints and the heavy handed seemingly incompetent (but not, really) approach of the bureaucrats.


What a bunch of leeches.


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It would only take a small slice of the $58 million of public money CAPSLO received last year for Dan Du Vaul to be a Saint in the eyes of everyone.


While reflecting on this story, it appears that Dan was fighting to run his privately funded facility while others were fighting to shut him down, likely to protect their continued justification for this exorbinant amount of public money..


I think the word “cynical” is too often confused with precongnitive hind sight?


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I think what ya’ll need to know about public funding is that it can only be spent on what it is earmarked for. More than $40 mill is for childcare and education programs that serve thousands of families across ten counties. Not a dime of that can be moved to address homelessness with out a federal mandate re-appropriating the funds.


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LOL….what a polyanna you are.


“…it can only be spent on what it was earmarked for” can also be said about the gift cards which were supposed to be used only by the homeless clients.


Those rules are only valid if there is an honest person administering the program. Clearly, “honesty ” is something Dee Torres will never be accused of although, lord knows, she can be accused of so very much else.


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Typical response from you. Someone cites facts, you call them a name. In your world, if something you believe is proven untrue, it must be that someone is dishonest, or the fix is in, or you can’t trust them, etc…


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If the allegations were made by one ex, then you might be onto something but identical statements were made by at least 3 ex’s, over a dozen existing and previous employees and several volunteers. These allegations aren’t new, CCN has been working on this series for at least two years and the complaints started long before that.


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Except that Granola Girl wasn’t commenting on the allegations. Again, when someone cites facts, name-calling is the response of people who don’t know the facts.


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Does it matter that the facts were not relevant because a:) we’re not talking about federal funds we’re talking about city/county funds given to CAPSLO FOR the homeless services that could have gone to other organizations b) even if we were talking about federal funds, again, in this context we’re talking about funds for homeless services and not the other funds obtained by CAPSLO.


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GranolaGirl’s sing-song schpiel about what things are SUPPOSED TO BE, and stating them as fact, are about equal as stating “The sky is blue” because it is SUPPOSED to be blue when, in fact, during the summer in LA there are not many days when the skies are blue.


The City of Bell trial just concluded and multiple convictions were handed down for four of the defendants.


GranolaGirl could have posted the same thing about the City of Bell defendants, even though the evidence was overwhelming that they had committed fraud while “serving” the City of Bell.


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At this point, one would near need to be one of the CAPSLO administration and SLOCo BOS ostriches to entertain the idea that Dee Torres and her ilk are anything close to being “honest,” which is what they would have to be for “granola girl” ‘s message to be true.


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Dude, Mary, you are hysterical (and I don’t mean it as synonymous to funny). Call me polyanna or “sing-song” or whatever, but your hysteria is interfering with your reading comprehension.


I was replying to Jorge. He wanted to know why some of the $58 mil can’t be funneled to Dan DuVal. That is why (mkaney), the other funds are in the context of the conversation. People keep bringing up the other funds as if they can somehow be credited to Torres and Hill’s relationship or some other local good ‘ole network, or as if they are somehow related to the issue at hand.


I’m just saying that you can’t take Head Start or Child Care Reimbursement (or Title X or weatherization, etc) money and give it to another agency for homeless services. You could give CAPSLO’s homeless services money to another agency to provide homeless services, but at a local level we can’t re-appropriate funding from Head Start (etc) and give it to anyone whose not providing those services.


I just looked at the CAPSLO 2012 audit (it’s available to anyone who knows how to use the google). Homeless Services’ budget was less than 4% of the total budget. Those are the only funds you could move elsewhere for homeless services. THAT is all I said and that is all I meant.


I know I have “girl” in my name, but what is up with people trying to discredit what I have to say by accusing me of being quaint?


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QUOTING GRANOLA GIRL: “I’m just saying that you can’t take Head Start or Child Care Reimbursement (or Title X or weatherization, etc) money and give it to another agency for homeless services.”


FYI, I’m not the hysterical type. Hysterically funny, perhaps, but that’s about as close as I get to hysteria.


I know what you are saying, but perhaps you don’t quite understand…CAPSLO under the direction of Biz Steinberg and Dee Torres can do whatever they danged well please. And they have plenty of CAPSLOites lined up, apparently, to participate in their coverup.


Mayor Rizzo and the City of Bell council members were not supposed to pay themselves exorbitant salaries by paying themselves large sums of money for attending committee meetings they never attended because the committees were shams used as fronts to facilitate the fraud perpetrated on the Bell taxpayers.


Rizzo and the council members would, arbitrarily, with no forewarning and without any explanation for what it was for, bill the residents of Bell for extra money. This went on FOR YEARS.


So don’t tell me what corrupt local area governments and their officials and contractors can do. It doesn’t matter what they are supposed to do. What matters is what they are able to do because of slick operators like Steinberg, Torres and their handmaiden sycophants like Coughlin, oh so ready to jump right in a coverup conspiracy.


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Some advice: Do not try to confuse MaryMalone (or just about anyone else on this blog) w/facts. Think of little kids who put their fingers in their ears when they don’t want to listen to their parents. They have their tin-foil hats (MM: “So don’t tell me what corrupt local area governments and their officials and contractors can do. It doesn’t matter what they are supposed to do.”) They are so dis-interested in the truth that they applaud a man whose criminal record includes assault on a woman.


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I have read some of the comments and Homer, I have not and have ever been afraid of Miss Torres or SLO local government, And I am not worried about Ian Parkinson cause I can tell you a story about an interaction between him and I when he was with MBPD. I unfortunately am a fault for not speaking up or out sooner, but it would not have matter back then and If the county DA had balls, and if Biz Steinburg was not afraid of Dee Torres and her political backing from County supervisors and commissioners like Perry who support and back her no matter what she does. So, I would be surprised if anything comes from this cause clearly the TT has bowed down to Hill and Torres and KSBY must be afraid too. Neither one of these local reporting agencies have commented on anything. Yet, that is the good old boy network at work. I have nothing to hide or fear, and it is funny that Miss Torres or Hill have said a word to me, Cause they both know I have no problem going toe to toe in the streets or in the court room. So, I do ask for forgiveness in my small part of this unspeakable tragedy, Yet, I have no problem speaking out here or in a court room!


The Ex-Boyfriend and Father of one of Miss Torres’s daughter’s


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Thank you so very much for speaking out now.


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R u the same ex-bf that was arrested in 1999 and served 6 months in jail for physically abusing Dee Torres? Mooo284225 6/0299, PI PC 242

R u the same ex-bf that Dee Torres has been forced to obtain Restraining Orders against consistently since 1999?

Is ur current restraining order in effect until 10/31/17 – not only protecting Dee Torres, but also protecting your daughter, who the Courts have deemed needs protection from you?

Guess anyone is free to spew their venom on this forum.


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Well, hello there, Dee.


HIS big mistake was getting involved with a disturbed woman. And, if your facts are correct, then this is being handled through the legal system.


…the same legal system that is going to put you away for a very long time.


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Pretty pathetic to defend a convicted abuser.


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Why don’t you provide a reference for that statement, which you have repeatedly issued as one of your “facts.”


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Homer did not need to provide a reference statement because 1truth did, right above your statement. Seems you missed it because it was hidden.


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Not nearly as pathetic as defending someone who steals from homeless children and had a sick baby sleep in a car when hotel vouchers were available.


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I thought I read the family who slept in the car made over $1000.00 a month.


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Disgusting.


You also read that the family had a SICK BABY and was HOMELESS.


You also read that Dee gave a hotel voucher to a single man who had more income than the homeless family and that the single man also had a van.


Do the homeless community (and especially homeless infants and children) a favor and please stay away and do not attempt to “help” with homeless services. And take Dee with you. It’s beyond me that someone who hates homeless people as much as Dee Torres does can become director of homeless services. You sound a lot like Dee.


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Take one away from the likes on the comment from Ms Torres. That was supposed to be a thumbs down! I think we all know how every story has 2 sides! The problem is, it’s not just an ex coming forward! Obviously this ex had no problem spending jail time when Ms Torres pressed charges against him. Admitting involvement in the use of stolen gift cards could cause him to serve more time but at least he won’t be alone, Ms Torres will be there too! Not to worry Ms Torres, I’m sure there will be more than a 150 ft distance between you.


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LOL, LOL, LOL. What’s the matter Dee, can’t figure out which one of your ex’s placed that post?


Well lets see, there are 3 separate baby daddies of which you were only married to one of them. Then there are the 3 ex husbands (or is it 4) and then there are all those other guy’s including the one that you’re currently in a dispute with over the house you purchased when you lived together. before you became Adam’s “mistress”. Hell, it could be anybody but what will really be fun to watch is what will happen when you and Adam Hill fall out. ROFLMAO.


But guess what folks? Dee is competent when it comes to straightening out everyone else who has a problem! She knows whats best for them…….. If there was ever a “case’ that needed some management, it’s YOU, DEE TORRES.


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@PAULJONES: “If there was ever a “case’ that needed some management, it’s YOU, DEE TORRES.


You nailed it, dude.


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I’m not Dee. Seriously folks, you don’t think a story that relies on the allegations of someone should include information like this? Why? What kind of “investigative” news organization wouldn’t look at court records for an anonymous source? And if they didn’t, that pretty much defines negligence when it comes to a libel suit. Okay, start w/the thumbs down.


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The Watergate “story” depended on the allegations of Deep Throat. Indeed, I can’t think of a corruption scandal that DIDN’T start with allegations from witnesses or researchers who were brave enough to come forward and take the risk of vindictive blow-back.


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You may not be Dee, but I’m pretty impressed that someone unrelated could produce case numbers, dates, and the PC violations after 10 pm! Wow, you must really do your homework to pop that case number right out of your head, and to know the dates? Damn you’re good!!


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At this point, Homer’s apparent job is to hold up GranolaGirl’s skirts for her.


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You sure are obsessed w/skirts. You’re actually a guy, aren’t you?


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Thank you for speaking out! Are you the same ex and father in the article? If not, have you witnessed any theft or misuse of donation? I think the you have the power to make things happen, as do anyone else she has dated! So glad you have stepped up! Who’s the next brave ex to step up?


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I’m surprised Dee’s ex’s haven’t by now started a coffee group or something. There is strength in numbers, and I am sure the experiences of this group would be very similar.


One such coffee group I used to “visit” (from a table a way) was a large group of women who wer ex-employees of Arianna Huffington, when she and Michael lived in Montecito.


These women were bold as brass…no whispered exchanges. They met at the Montecito Starbucks, on a weekly basis. OMG, there was GREAT stuff that came from that group.


Anyway, it is quite clear that Dee Torres and Adam Hill are going to continue to wield their power as a cudgel against anyone who dares to speak about the “legally-impaired” things they have done. As I said, there is strength in numbers, and it will be harder to intimidate a group whose members have experienced similar issues with Torres.


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Don’t know about the rest of you but I’m getting confused with Torres’s slew of boyfriends, ex-boyfriends, children, ex-husbands, pets and God knows what else.


Can’t they be indexed or something so we can refer to them by letter or number as they weigh in?


I know that sounds uncaring but it would be so much easier for the rest of us who aren’t familiar with this type of lifestyle.


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If an issues is something I believe I will be referencing over time, I use databases for more complicated political scandals, and spreadsheets for the ones that aren’t as involved. When I post or work on research, I open the spreadsheet and keep it active in the background so I can easily “CTL+TAB” between what I’m working on and the spreadsheet.


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Thanks, DD, for the insight. I am heartened that, so far, at least one of Dee Torres’ ex’s has been willing to take a stand here at CCN against her.


It seems she tries to wield her power as a cudgel to beat and threaten others into submission. The fact that you won’t allow yourself to be beaten into submission by her brings credibility to what I’ve observed in the past: a woman can only threaten and try to intimidate a man so far before he’s had enough and takes a stand.


I hope you spend more time here, pointing out her lies. You know things about her and her past that very few other people do, and you know how she operates. This information will help all of us understand how she could have so ghoulishly fed on the homeless, who usually do not have the resources to stand up to someone who wields the power Torres does.


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I want to comment on how low a person must be who would comment publicly on their child’s mother. If you don’t care for the mother, (sounds like your feelings were hurt), at least have some compassion for your own child. You know she is old enough to know what is going on. This is just mean-spirited. Think twice about how your daughter must feel.

Sounds like Ms. Torres made the right decision in making you her ex.


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I missed something, 1TRUTH.

Dee’s Ex was in jail in 1999 for physical abuse for six months? And who has a restraining order against him for YEARS?

Why was THAT hidden?


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I’m confused about which daughter you are referencing.


Would this be the one who Dee gave the gift cards to, in order to allow the daughter to take the younger kids to unwittingly commit fraud and theft of gift cards meant to be given to CAPSLO’s homeless population?


If it is, the daughter needs to look to her mother for the blame in getting the children involved in her life of fraud and crime.


The fault lies not with the messenger, but with the criminal who committed the crime. If you don’t like what Torres did, and the fact that she roped her kids into her life of crime and fraud, then you need to go talk to Torres. There would be no messenger about Torres theft of gift cards meant for CAPSLO clients’ use if Torres had not stolen them and used them for her own flights of fancy.


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The is a big difference between a ‘messenger’ and someone who is spreading false allegations. Oh, wait a minute, maybe not on this venue.


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If anyone is looking to investigate CAPSLO further they may get some ideas where to look from what happened in New Jersey:


http://www.nj.gov/oag/newsreleases10/pr20100226a.html


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This is a great article, mkaney! I especially like the part where this corrupt *itch committed fraud on behalf of her family, and SHE ENDED UP TAKING DOWN FAMILY MEMBERS WITH HER.


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I don’t get people! It’s unreal!


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Thanks, my little google adventure turned up some fascinating reads. Of course you would expect that when cornered that’s the way dishonest and panicked people act, throwing everyone they can under the bus. You like how they routed the revenue stream through a totally different program right through the Community Action Partnership and then into their pockets? If she would have been smarter and been able to get the cash from low income people INDIRECTLY, like say through an organization like uh.. Family Ties, then she could have just funnelled to herself in the form of a larger salary and she probably would’ve gotten away with it.


Her mistake was taking the cash from the low income people directly and then fraudulently submitting for the benefits. Guess they didn’t have someone like Biz or Dee at the helm.


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Here is the reason why nothing will happen to CAPSLO and why it and all the other Community Action Partnerships will continue to serve as cash cows for the people that run them. This document was presented to Congress in 1979 (!) and talks about the problems found in audits of these programs (CAA and CAPs) . These programs serve a political purpose and have been building this revenue stream for a long, long time.


http://gao.justia.com/department-of-agriculture/1979/10/results-of-audits-at-selected-community-action-agencies-110626/110626-full-report.pdf


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That was a great read.


1979 “Several Community Action Agencies have established corpor-

ations which acquire and lease back real and personal property to the Community Action Agency. This arrangement has resulted in Federal grants paying interest on loans used to acquire the

property. In addition, the leasing companies hold title to the property and retain the proceeds from the sale of excess property.

Had the Community Action Agency acquired the property in its own name, it would not have been allowed to charge interest to the Federal grants and would have had to return any excess property or the proceeds from its sale to the Federal Government. “


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For everyone who posts that nothing will happen because of the CCN’s work outing the corruption at SLO county homeless services contracted out to CAPSlo, run by Dee Torres, this is why I know think you are wrong.


Some of the cities in southeast Los Angeles had leaders who felt they were above the law, too.


It was easy to see why they felt this way: corruption in this area had been so rampant for so long, without any retribution, that many felt there was no hope for ever bringing some form of justice to those taking advantage of this poor area of the LA region.


For a few years, the LATimes had been publishing on the entrenched corruption in the City of Vernon, then they started publishing on the City of Cudahy. Although the LATimes’ work on these two cities was indepth and complete, it didn’t generate any intervention by the State…at first.


Then the LATimes started publishing the results of its investigation on the City of Bell. The behavior of the leadership of Bell, the largely powerlessness of the city’s residents, and the sheer audacity and greed of those involved in the corruption, made the LATimes’ Bell series the tipping point of what the people, and the State, were willing to tolerate.


The Bell leadership took advantage of their largely poor Latino working-class residents, many of whom did not speak English. There was also a hard-scrabble business class–who built their businesses on their own, and worked long hours to turn a profit. It was learning of these hardworking, largely politically powerless residents being victimized by Bell’s leadership that really made readers angry.


Soon, the State Controller’s office stepped in, and then other State agencies.


Well, the first group of Bell’s leadership (the city council members) were the first to be brought to trial, which ended yesterday. All except one (a preacher who became a council member long after the council had voted themselves such lucrative salaries) were convicted of some of the charges.


Ex-mayor Rizzo and his assistant will be tried in a few months. I hope to be there.


I grew up in a city that borders Bell, and I was aware of the corruption in my city growing up. Reports from people still living there indicate that the leadership in Bell has dramatically changed, and at least, if there is corruption, it is not blatant, and the people are not suffering. The city looks beautiful now because the leadership invests in the city’s neighborhoods.


So I am very pleased to see a big message being sent to the cities of southeast LA: the time for cruel corruption and mistreatment of residents is over.


CCN is playing the most important role of attempts to get a handle on the corruption in SLO County. They’ve already published at least three bellweather series, which brought a good deal of attention to our county and its leadership.


I believe the CAPSLO series may be the tipping point which will bring State and perhaps federal attention to our problems here. I believe the powerlessness of the CAPSLO clients may be what finally brings action from the State.


Those involved in the CAPSLO scandal may thought no one would care if they kicked their homeless clients to the curb and stole their money, but I think they are wrong.


Time will tell.


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