A secret recording dispute between City Council District 3 candidates Tim Gaspar and Barri Worth Girvan has sparked accusations of unethical campaign conduct and potential violations of California's two-party consent law ahead of the June 2 primary.
A secret recording dispute between two candidates for the Los Angeles City Council District 3 seat has escalated into accusations of illegal recording and unethical campaign conduct. The fight comes just weeks before the June 2 primary election that will determine who replaces term-limited Councilmember .
The controversy centers on a video showing a post-debate exchange between candidates Tim Gaspar and Barri Worth Girvan. The clip surfaced in the private Facebook group Crimebusters of West Hills and Woodland Hills, a neighborhood community group with nearly 16,000 members.
The dispute began after a debate on May 6. Girvan said the exchange occurred after the debate ended, when microphones were off and she believed the conversation was private.
"The recording happened without my knowledge or consent after the debate ended, when our debate microphones were off, and no one was paying attention to what we were saying," Girvan said in a text message Tuesday. "He was talking to me in whispered tones at least 10 feet from anybody else."
Girvan said Gaspar approached her to question comments she had made in a campaign video criticizing his support from Councilmember John Lee. Lee was fined $138,124.32 last year by the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission over allegations that he accepted undisclosed gifts and misused his position while serving as chief of staff to then-Councilmember Mitchell Englander, according to the Daily News.
Girvan said she acknowledged previously seeking Lee's endorsement before learning of the ethics case, but maintained that nothing she said in the exchange was inaccurate, according to the Daily News.
Gaspar's campaign disputed Girvan's characterization of the encounter. The campaign said the exchange took place publicly onstage immediately after the debate while recording equipment remained plainly visible.
"This past week, Barri and I participated in our eighth debate that was open to the public," Gaspar said in a statement provided Tuesday. "Like every single debate, it was audio and video recorded, in a room open to the public with a clearly visible sign indicating attendees may be recorded or photographed."
Gaspar said he "wore an open and obvious mic" on the outside of his lapel with "a green light emitting when recording," and said the microphone and camera remained visible throughout the debate, according to the Daily News.
"Immediately after the debate ended, while still at the table and on stage, in front of multiple attendees and the debate hosts, I turned to Barri and asked her why she continued to post and say intentionally misleading and untruthful information about me," Gaspar said. "That one-minute conversation happened to be captured by the audio and video."
Gaspar's campaign denied intentionally releasing the recording publicly, saying the clip "was not an official campaign communication or intentionally released" and that "an unfortunate error by a volunteer" was "immediately corrected," according to the Daily News.
Girvan disputed that explanation, pointing to the way the video was framed online.
"His video opens with 'I confronted Barri,'" she said. "This was no mistake."
The dispute drew criticism from fellow District 3 candidate Christopher Robert "C.R." Celona, who accused Gaspar of engaging in unethical political conduct and argued the recording violated California's two-party consent law.
"What happened to Barri is wrong, period," Celona said in a statement Monday. "Campaigns should be about ideas, leadership and solutions for the future of Los Angeles, not political traps, secret recordings and weaponizing private conversations for personal or political gain."
Council District 3 spans the west San Fernando Valley neighborhoods of Woodland Hills, Canoga Park, Reseda, Tarzana, and Winnetka, as well as the rapidly growing Warner Center district, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The three candidates are all Woodland Hills residents, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Tim Gaspar, 44, founded Gaspar Insurance in 2008 and grew it into one of the Valley's largest independent insurance firms before selling it in 2021. He has endorsements from Blumenfield, billionaire developer Rick Caruso, and County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Barri Worth Girvan, 42, has been the district director for County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath for the last three years. She has secured support from Horvath, the county Democratic Party, and the Federation of Labor, according to the Los Angeles Times.
C.R. Celona, 46, is a technology entrepreneur who is campaigning on resuscitating the city's entertainment industry by fast-tracking film permits and cutting red tape, according to the Los Angeles Times.
All three candidates support Mayor Karen Bass's goal of restoring the LAPD to 9,500 officers, though Gaspar and Girvan want to go further to 10,000 officers, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The candidates are also aligned on enforcing Municipal Code section 41.18, which bars homeless encampments within 500 feet of schools and daycare centers, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Gaspar leads in campaign contributions, followed by Girvan, with Celona trailing far behind, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Through May 18, nearly $928,000 in independent expenditures had been spent supporting Gaspar, with the largest outlay from the Downtown business group Central City Association. An L.A. County Federation of Labor PAC had spent $61,000 backing Girvan, according to Golden State Report.
The winner will confront major issues facing the district, including the $10 billion Rams Village at Warner Center mega-development, homelessness, and housing density under state Senate Bill 79, according to Golden State Report and LA Public Press.
The June 2 primary will determine which two candidates advance to a runoff, if necessary, to represent the district's approximately 260,000 residents on the Los Angeles City Council.
This article was generated with AI assistance.