Countywide : Prop. 187 Advocate Settles Creditor’s Claim

Ronald S. Prince, the Proposition 187 campaign co-chairman, on Monday agreed to pay $20,000 to settle a claim filed by a creditor in his personal bankruptcy proceedings.

Prince agreed to pay the settlement to John Lunetta of Corona, who had been holding a legal bill that Prince once owed to his former attorney, William Baker of Santa Ana. The settlement came abruptly--as a trial involving the legal bill continued for the second day before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge John J. Wilson.

Prince, 47, of Tustin, filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition last November, asserting that most of his $313,700 debt came from expenses incurred during the successful anti-illegal immigration initiative. He said in his petition that his assets totaled $3,950, including a 1986 Buick, $200 cash and other personal items. He also said his income during the past three years was in the form of gifts totaling $3,500.

Prince, an unemployed accountant, said Monday that the settlement was “the best for all parties concerned.”

The settlement “is a tie,” he said. “It’s like kissing your sister, but sometimes it’s the best thing to do.”