cervantes Before the packed chambers of the Compton City Council, college board member Lorraine Cervantes denied that she did anything wrong when she solicited someone to burn down The Compton Bulletin offices office and made bogus statements about the newspaper’s editor.

“I don’t know who tried to burn it down, but they need to do it again,” Cervantes said in late July, referring  to a fire at The Bulletin office on Jan. 2, 2010. While that fire was ruled accidental, speculation endures that it was the work of an arsonist.

On Sept. 7, Cervantes asserted she did nothing wrong in soliciting a would-be arsonist to strike again.

“I’m tired of being lied on. Retards, even the retards know that it was an electrical fire. So we know that nobody set that fire,” Cervantes said. “That was just a figure of speech referring to what they (the paper) deserved.”

Cervantes also used her public comments to personally attack the paper’s editor, Allison Jean Eaton, reading a letter Cervantes said she received anonymously that stated Eaton is dating a high-ranking Sheriff’s Department official the letter named only as “Saunders” who works at the Carson Sheriff’s Station.

She read the letter in its entirety before brandishing a sheaf of papers on which photos of Eaton had been printed. Cervantes waved them in the air and described Eaton as “immoral” and “sick” and described some of the photos as “pornographic.”

Later, after being chastised for attacking a journalist who was only doing her job, Cervantes delivered another tongue-lashing.

“I didn’t attack anybody. She attacked herself because she put all of that trash on Facebook for everyone to see,” she said.

Eaton has recently reported extensively on the efforts of Mayor Eric J. Perrodin to re-establish a police department in the city of Compton, which currently receives law enforcement services from the Sheriff’s Department. She believes this has made her a target for retaliation from the mayor’s backers and said at least one of Cervantes’ comments suggests this is the case.

“The old police department is gone. Leave them alone,” said Cervantes, who had entered the Council Chambers that day alongside former Compton police Lt. Reggie Wright Sr.

Eaton denies that she is or ever has been romantically involved with any employee of the Sheriff’s Department.

Sgt. Gregory Saunders worked several years ago at Compton Sheriff’s Station, where he headed up the Special Assignment Office (SAO). Eaton said she used to spend extended periods of time with the SAO sergeant and his team because in 2006 and 2007 she was working on a series of stories based on ride-alongs she took with the team. The series was aimed at providing the community a glimpse into the various ways in which the department was fighting crime in Compton, she said.

“Our relationship was strictly professional,” Eaton said about Saunders, who she had not spoken to in more than a year until late last week. “I didn’t even have his new phone number, but he called me last Thursday after hearing about that nonsense accusation. He just wanted to know what the heck was going on.”

She added that similar false allegations have been made about her over the past two years in various online postings made by anonymous individuals.

“I believe that the person or persons behind these lies are attempting to paint me as having some sort of allegiance with the Sheriff’s Department that prevents me from reporting on policing issues without bias,” she said.

“Ms. Cervantes is entitled to her opinion regarding the content of the paper,” said Eaton. “If she chooses to disagree with the facts, that is her prerogative. It is unfortunate that she insists on spewing such negativity, but so be it, as she has her First Amendment right to free speech.”

Eaton said she draws the line, however, when people begin to spread lies about her in an attempt to destroy her reputation.

CONTINUE READING STORY BY REPORTER CHERYL SCOTT AT THECOMPTONBULLETIN.COM