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Mailer Attacks Feinstein, Feinstein Strikes Back

   Many Santa Monica residents received a mailer Friday that was headlined “Michael Feinstein is a Negative Ad for Santa Monica,” and featured a trio of alleged, but unattributed newspaper headlines.
  
   The mailer was sent by “Santa Monicans for Responsible Government 520 South Brand Avenue, Suite 700, Los Angeles, CA 90071.” There is no listing for South Brand Avenue in the Thomas Guide.
  
   A second mailer from the same group, attacking Feinstein’s
   position on school funding, arrived Saturday. It gave the group’s address as “520 South Grand Avenue.”
  
   According to “expenditure reports.” the mailers were paid for by Samuel Kardashian, owner of Southern California Disposal, which has proposed that it take over the City’s recycling operations. Feinstein has opposed the proposal.
  
   Responding to the first mailer in a letter to Sharon Gilpin who is working on Feinstein’s campaign, Glen Franklin Koontz, Feinstein’s attorney, wrote, “I have reviewed the scurrilous campaign mailer you sent to me, and frankly am shocked by the blatant falsity of its contents. Below I respond to that mailer with the truth:
  
   "First, Michael Feinstein’s records were not seized by the police. I personally delivered Michael’s financial records to the district attorney and the police voluntarily and at the direction of Michael Feinstein. Michael gave these documents to the police without first being asked or served with a subpoena. Indeed, throughout the investigation, it was Michael’s policy and direction to his attorneys to cooperate fully and to not invoke any constitutional privileges to protect the disclosure of information.
  
   “Second, the district attorney did not find that Michael Feinstein violated “state law”. Rather, the district attorney and the police welcomed Michael Feinstein’s full and voluntary cooperation with their investigation. At the end of that investigation, the district attorney declined to pursue any charges against Michael as there was no evidence of any wrongdoing.
  
   “Third, Michael Feinstein never deposited any campaign funds in a personal bank account. Michael Feinstein is—and always has been—in complete compliance with all federal, state and local campaign finance, election and tax laws and regulations. Any suggestion to the contrary is false.
  
   “If you have the name(s) of the organization(s) and person(s) involved in this mailer, please forward them to me. Even under the lax standards afforded statements made concerning public persons, the statements in this mailer are false, defamatory and legally actionable.”
  
   Koontz has filed a formal complaint.