Former Palm Springs mayor Steve Pougnet was sentenced to two years probation, avoiding jail time despite admitting he took ...

Ex-Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet was sentenced Wednesday to two years’ felony probation for accepting six-figure bribes to publicly support development projects in the city. Pougnet, 62, in May ...

John Wessman faces nine felony charges of bribery and one of conspiracy and is accused of paying a second real estate developer, Richard Meaney, who in turn facilitated about $375,000 payments to ...

John Wessman faces nine felony charges of bribery and one of conspiracy and is accused of paying a second real estate developer, Richard Meaney, who in turn facilitated about $375,000 payments to ...

When paid, Meaney’s company, or a third involved person, would then pay Pougnet for work he never did either. "We had an agreement to pay Steve Pougnet," Meaney testified.

Steve Pougnet had earlier pleaded guilty to conspiracy with a major real estate developer in a scheme that ran from 2012 to ...

The other developer, Richard Meaney, 59, pleaded guilty to a lesser misdemeanor charge in 2023. Both are not expected to serve jail time.

Deputy District Attorney Amy Zois had alleged Wessman and fellow developer Richard Hugh Meaney, 59, conspired to favor Pougnet with high-dollar rewards to gain his support for the men's ...

Pougnet and developer Richard Meaney have both pleaded guilty to charges related to this case. Pougnet is scheduled to be sentenced on July 2. Meaney's sentencing is scheduled for July 28.

Prosecutors call it a case of backroom deals and political corruption, saying Wessman and Meaney used cash and influence to buy the mayor’s vote, but the defense argues those payments were legal.

Both the ex-mayor and Meaney are expected to receive terms of probation. "There is very little evidence against Mr. Wessman,'' defense attorney David Greenberg told jurors in his opening statement.