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Private counsel appointed, trial pushed back in Grajeda case

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David Grajeda

LANCASTER – David Grajeda, the man accused of interfering with a pubic meeting based on his actions at a Lancaster Criminal Justice Commission meeting, was scheduled to begin trial Monday at the Antelope Valley courthouse, but his case was continued to March.

His recently appointed defense attorney, David Harris, asked for more time to file a motion to exclude certain evidence in advance of the trial. Judge Akemi Arakaki continued the case to March 5 for the motions hearing, where the defense will try to limit what evidence the prosecution can bring forth.

It was not clear Monday what evidence the defense was seeking to limit or exclude.

Grajeda, a frequent speaker and critic at Lancaster City Council meetings, was arrested on Oct. 25 as he attempted to enter a City Council meeting. He was charged with interfering with a public meeting based on his actions at an Oct. 12 Criminal Justice Commission meeting. View video of those actions here. Grajeda’s bail was initially set at $5,000 for the misdemeanor charge, but was later raised to $25,000. Grajeda was jailed for 16 days before bailing out on Nov. 9, and then hit with a restraining order barring him from Lancaster City Hall. On Nov. 16, Grajeda’s case was continued to Jan. 12 for pretrial, and on Nov. 22, Grajeda requested to represent himself going forward. On Jan. 12, Grajeda was admonished for subpoenaing City officials to testify at pretrial and ordered to appoint standby counsel.

Monday Grajeda said he was no longer representing himself and was turning his case over to his defense attorney, David Harris, whom he had selected on Jan. 27.

“I felt it was in the best interest of the court not to waste their time and my time so I appointed an attorney,” Grajeda said. “My attorney will be deciding from this point [on] what will be happening with the case.”

Grajeda, who is also running for mayor of Lancaster, said his pending case will not affect his campaign because “election is a separate issue.” He said having private counsel also means he will have more time to dedicate to his campaign.

“Now that I have an attorney, I don’t have to spend time thinking about filing motions,” Grajeda said. “I found the right lawyer with the right personality.”

Grajeda said he still has no plans to settle the case against him.

“I’m fighting this case all the way,” he said. “I’m taking it to the box.”

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32 comments for "Private counsel appointed, trial pushed back in Grajeda case"

  1. Where is the story about this dumba$$ getting arrested yesterday??
    Waaaaaaaaahhhhahahahahhaah. Just in time for the election! Let me guess…those meanie cops set him up again…no wait…it was Parris….or the shooter on the grassy knoll……stinker, Matt S, ….., hurry to his defense

  2. NO PRE-SCHOOL FOR LANCASTER CHILDREN STARTING NEXT YEAR!!!!!!! CAN WE AS A COMMUNITY DO SOMETHING??????

  3. I’ve only lived here since August 2011. So I consider myself to be a bit more objective. What shocked the hell out of me was when I heard that Parris used to be a cocaine user and abuser. How can ANYONE judge someone based on smoking pot or whatever when the mayor himself was a drug user. I don’t hold that against him except that I’ve also heard he wants to run every felon out of town. Does that include Parris himself?? Otherwise, why would he be after the same people that he used to belong to? People DO recovery – I know that myself – I haven’t used in 12 years. Soooo, I would think Lancaster would have great re-entry programs and be open to having jobs for people trying to get their lives together. And WHY are some on here reverting to straight name calling??? Is that the best we can do as human beings? I’m beginning to think Lancaster is not the place I was hoping it would be. And I’m from Orange county, where people think it’s REALLY conservative – HA!

  4. All you fools making Grajeda out to be some hero are fools. The guy is a convicted felon. Now he’s running for mayor? Surely there’s a law against that. I know, its the big bad sheriffs department,no wait, big bad Rex Parris that invented his felony conviction,right? You supporters are idiots.

    • Parris is an admited drug addict and has spend time in jail as well, just ask him, I guess the joke is on you, and no there is no law for felons to run for office if they paid thier debt to society, even selfrighous poeple like you can run, there is no law against it, at least David has courage to stand up for what he believes, do you?

      • Hey this guy David had the balls to call Parris a crook to his face, something we all think of the Parris, he paid the price for it 16 days in jail and they are done with him he still going to trial, but hey your are such a great person, why don’t you run?

      • David is not “standing up for what he believes”. HA HA HA!!!!!! you are either very naive or VERY VERY stupid!

        David is a full grown man with the mind of a teenager.

        David believes in smoking pot day in and day out, all day long. That is HIS cause and its a pathetic one!

        I am sure “Adam” still lives at home with mommy and sponges off of her.

    • It seems to me that most of the people behind this Grajeda character are just social misfits or people who still act like teenagers with issues toward those in authority. These are also people with very little self control. I have lived my life in many places where there is chaos such as South Chicago and Watts and I came to Lancaster to get away from that. I am a single female who lives alone and people like myself are highly vulnerable to criminals. I will never support criminals or anyone who is sympathetic to them! ever! mark my words!

      This Grajeda character is nothing more than a rebellious teenager who happens to have the age of a man!

      • Sorry to disapoint you Ms. Davis, but there are bigger crooks in town, take a look at your property tax bill and where the money is being spend.

        • Adam, get out of your mama’s basement and get an education. The words you are looking for are “spent” and “you’re.”

          • Well thank you kind Sr. I don’t mind being corrected, we all make mistakes and misspelled words, if that is the worst I do in my life I believe my mom will still love me. As soon as I graduate from High School, go to college and come back to the AV I know there will be a job waiting for me, thank for you interest on my well being, you sound like a Christian person, I knwo when the Lord sees you he will say “Well done you good and faithful servant” God Bless you.

          • When losing an argument, always go into grammar Nazi role. Because spelling is so much more important then the thoughts expressed. HAHAHA
            Right?

        • Parris must own a landscaping business on the side as that’s all the city spends $$$$s on like the BLVD or the on/off ramp areas of Avenue L. It’s called making a silk purse……..or ‘putting lipstick on a pig’.

          Meanwhile, the residents complain of potholes and half empty old shopping centers scattered about town.

          Parris said he was going to sell his big home and move into a condo off the BLVD. We’ll see. He is such a BSer. Is he friends with Newt Gingrich who wants to put a colony on the moon by the end of his second term as president? Now, doesn’t that sound like something Parris would spew?

    • His felonies were teenage crimes. I think one was a hit and run (No serious injuries involved) and either stealing a car or receiving stolen property. Just stupid teenage behavior.

      He may not be a rocket scientist, but at least he’s standing up against oppression from the Nazi regime.

      • Nope. Maybe you and Adam can ask him. If he doesn’t tell you the real crime, and its much more serious, then you have been played.

      • Am I missing something here? When did it become “normal” for teenagers to have felonies?

        • Spend some time in our local courthouse. Minor infractions are being tried as felonies.
          I’ve seen a retired disabled school teacher, who tried to save a horses life, feloinzed. The fact that she had months of vet care reports showing the horse as being cared for, at the proper weight, and on it’s feet every day didn’t make a bit of difference.
          If they can get that to fly, why would you believe they couldn’t easily get a felony conviction against a kid with low hanging pants and a funny hair cut. Sex at 20 with a 17yr old becomes rape. A joint become possession to sell. Speakers bought from a friend become accepting stolen goods.
          A 72yr old white man from the east side is being prosecuted today for driving drunk, even though he swears he hasn’t drank in years. They said the breath test showed positive, (although he’s never seen it).
          Thinking it wasn’t correctly calibrated, he requested a blood test when taken to the station. He was refused. And of course, at 72, no previous record.
          The more folks they criminalize, they less folks they need to treat well.
          We have a problem here folks. You either stand for it or against it!

          • Maureen,most of us work,so we don’t have time to hang out in court all day looking for the shooter on the grassy knoll. However, there is this book called a Penal Code here in California. I’ve read a bit of it and I can’t find any section that allows an infraction to be pursued as a felony. A 20 yr old having sex with a 17 year old has always been a felony. You may not agree with it,but its in there. You can’t blame Rex,the sheriff,or judges for that. If you really saw a poor soul being “felonized” after he purchased speakers from a friend,why didn’t he make his friend come testify about the purchase? If the 72 year old really had no alcohol/drugs in his system,the case will fall apart. We could go on all day,but I think you’ve been listening to those quack ex public defenders,Amy K and Gustavo D,along with Ace,and their belief in the big conspiracy theory!

          • And with those statements, you’ve what? Marginalized me? I know Amy, but not Gustavo. I have worked for 35yrs. Is that enough? Are you proud of the fact that working has allowed you to not pay attention to the felonization of our children? Our elderly? Our poor?
            You say it with such pride. “Duh. I’m working and thus take pride in my ignorance?”
            Who is speaking of any grassy knoll? Is that what you hope my statements are? Nothing more than some conspiracy BS? And who will pay when they go to jury and are found Innocent? You and I.
            Maybe you should be paying attention. Cleo? Right!

            Keep trying to bunch people together who have never met. It might buy you another year or two.
            Marginalize! Marginalize! Marginalize!

    • Why won’t you address the fact that Parris was a drug user. My information says he was arrested 6 times . . .

    • It wouldn’t surprise me if Parris routinely has people who criticize him investigated as he has the law firm and the resources. That’s one reason I don’t use my full name here. I heard him on Time-Warner Channel 27 calling people who criticized the BLVD ‘toxic jerks’ after others and I wrote letters to the AV Press about it early last year. I wouldn’t put anything underhanded past him.

  5. City Council meetings are still censored, we are getting an Eye in the Sky, pleople are getting send to jail for speaking out against the money that the politicians are taking from the Re-development agency, the Mayor of Lancaster can not sit on that council or his new appointed Council Woman Sandra Johnson because of conflic ot interest, meaning they are getting money or have benefited from said agency, and to keep people of track he fights section 8 and anything that will give him press and confuse people into not looking how richer they are all getting while they bleed the City of Lancaster.

  7. It’s about time someone is standing up to the bullies and the liars. Hopefully, the truth will have a chance to come out in a court of law.

    Sadly, I think that The King owns the judges. They are his bitches. So we’l just have to see how this plays out.

    Hopefully justice will prevail.