Westminster Councilman Lam Files $500,000 Libel Suit Over Campaign Ad

City Councilman Tony Lam is seeking $500,000 in damages in a libel lawsuit filed Friday over a campaign ad run by two local political groups.

The lawsuit, filed in Orange County Superior Court, alleges that the newspaper ad placed Thursday by Westminster Citizens for Good Government and the Westminster Mobile Home Owners Assn. makes “false and defamatory” statements against Lam, who is running for his third term in office.

The ad, which urges voters to reject Lam’s reelection bid but does not name a rival candidate, refers to a civil lawsuit filed by firefighters who were awarded $700,000 in damages for their claim that they were hired fraudulently by the city. Lam was one of five City Council members named as defendants in the lawsuit.

The ad claims Lam “has been found guilty of civil fraud and civil rights violations.” It also claims his legal fees and damages cost city taxpayers more than $1 million.

But the councilman said in his lawsuit that he “never has been found guilty of civil fraud or of civil rights violations.” He added he has “never been criminally charged with any wrongdoing, let alone ever having been found guilty of any such crime.”

Officials of Citizens for Good Government said they were surprised by the lawsuit.

Stan Hirsch, a board member and until recently the director of the group, defended the ad.

“If you’re in violation, you’re guilty as far as I’m concerned,” Hirsch said. “He was in violation.”

Officials of the Mobile Home Owners Assn. could not be reached for comment.