L.A. County prosecutors looking at Alatorre lobbying

Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley has opened an inquiry into the lobbying work of former Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alatorre and whether he violated city laws by failing to disclose those activities, several sources said.

Cooley's Public Integrity Division, joined by investigators with the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, also have been seeking information about any lobbying work by former city commissioner Leland Wong, who was sentenced last month to five years in prison.

Both Alatorre and Wong have been influential figures in city politics and, in separate cases, have faced lengthy corruption probes. Alatorre pleaded guilty to tax charges in 2001 after a four-year federal investigation; Wong was convicted last summer on charges that dealt, in part, on contracting at the airport and harbor.

The inquiry comes one year after The Times reported that Alatorre had contacted at least seven city departments and five council members on behalf of various businesses without registering as a lobbyist. Two weeks after the article appeared, Alatorre filed his registration forms.

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-- David Zahniser