%1

An attorney who's admitted to a federal bribery charge for his role in the ongoing Los Angeles Department of Water and Power corruption investigation has asked a bankruptcy judge in Arizona for permission to take a deposition of LA City Attorney Mike Feuer, NBCLosAngeles.com reported. Paul O. Paradis, who entered a guilty plea in Los Angeles in January in the bribery case, made the request under a court rule that could allow Feuer's sworn testimony, and the discovery of a variety of records, to take place before it would typically be allowed in pretrial proceedings. The judge yesterday denied the special request, but said Feuer's testimony and documents would likely be relevant and part of regular discovery that takes place in the bankruptcy proceedings. Paradis filed for bankruptcy and the City of Los Angeles filed a related lawsuit seeking to recover millions of dollars paid to Paradis through an allegedly corrupt contract. Paradis' attorney, Alan Meda, told the court Tuesday that he and his client requested the special discovery procedure because they're focused on learning more about a Dec. 1, 2017 meeting, at which officials in the City Attorney's Office allegedly discussed how to cover up legal misconduct in the handling of the lawsuits that stemmed from the LA DWP's excessive billing debacle.