What does the City Attorney do?
The Chula Vista City Attorney is the city's top lawyer. As such, the city attorney leads an office that provides legal council on myriad issues and provides the legal services needed to implement public policy.
The office works with all of the city's boards and commissions and each of its municipal departments including: the city clerk's office, police and fire departments and public works.
It is staffed by a team of 10 full-time attorneys, one risk management specialist, three administrative assistants, interns and one manager. The office also works with outside council to help with lawsuits and other issues that require specialized legal experience and knowledge.
What issues is that office facing?
The reason why Chula Vista is having a special election
The reason Chula Vista is having a special election for the city attorney, is because voters elected a dead candidate in the November 2022 election.
The winner, Simon Silva, died of cancer before the election and died after his name could be removed from the ballots.
The San Diego Democratic Party and former Chula Vista Mayor Mary Salas continued to support Silva after he died.
A total of 59,975 votes were cast in the November 2022 election. Silva defeated Daniel Smith, who is now going by Dan Smith Diaz, by 679 votes.
Special election costs
While campaigning for Silva in 2022, San Diego Democratic Party Chairwoman Rebecca Taylor incorrectly told the San Diego Union-Tribune that if Silva won the election, "our duly elected city officials will follow the city charter to fill the vacancy."
After Silva won, Chula Vista's city charter called for a special election. This will cost taxpayers as much as $2 million.
In February, Chula Vista hired an outside law firm to provide legal services until voters elect a new city attorney.
The city awarded a contract not to exceed $350,000 to the Lounsbery Ferguson Altona & Peak law firm.
Campaign battle
Two candidates recently got into a legal battle over the official job description listed on the ballot, La Prensa first reported.
Bart Miesfeld took Marco Verdugo to court over Verdugo's use of "Deputy City Attorney," as his occupation on the ballot.
Verdugo is a senior associate with the Burke, Williams & Sorensen law firm, which serves as outside counsel for cities like Coronado and Solana Beach.
Although he works as a deputy city attorney for Coronado and Solana Beach, Verdugo is technically not a deputy city attorney employed by a municipality. A judge had Verdugo change his occupation to "City's Attorney."
Miesfeld was appointed Chula Vista City Attorney from 2008 to 2010, before it became an elected position.
Candidate Dan Smith Diaz narrowly lost the November 2022 Chula Vista City Attorney election to Silva.
Smith Diaz is a former federal public defender who now has a private law firm in downtown Chula Vista.
He was listed as Daniel Smith on the 2022 ballot. He told KPBS that his 99-year-old mother, who is Latina, asked him to use his full name in the upcoming election.
Even though Miesfeld worked in Chula Vista for 20 years, the Smith Diaz and Verdugo campaigns have criticized him for living in La Jolla and just recently moving to Chula Vista.
Who are the candidates?
Bart Miesfeld
- Former Chula Vista City Attorney, 2008-2010
- More than 20 years of experience in the Chula Vista City Attorney's Office
- Endorsed by state Assemblymember Steve Padilla and former Chula Vista Mayor Mary Salas
Miesfeld started his legal career as a trial attorney for a private law firm. He joined Chula Vista’s City Attorney Office in 1998 to help build its litigation branch.
That transition from private sector to civil servant was rewarding, he said.
“When you’re in private practice, it’s disputes between people and entities about money,” he said. “I could be a really good attorney and save people money or make people money, but when I went to the city of Chula Vista, it was a different mindset.”
Miesfeld worked his way up the ranks of the city attorney’s office, from assistant city attorney to senior assistant city attorney and finally was appointed city attorney in 2008.
Miesfeld worked with Silva, and was inspired to run after his untimely death.
“One of the reasons I want to do this job is out of respect for my colleague,” he said.
If elected, he’d like to make the office more transparent and public records more accessible.
“People have the right to know how their city is being run,” he said.
Dan Smith Diaz
- Federal attorney and small business owner
- Lost the 2022 City Attorney election by one percentage point
- Longtime Chula Vista resident
Smith Diaz lost the 2022 City Attorney election by 679 votes — out of a total 59,975 votes cast.
Before that November election, Smith Diaz was very critical of the fact that the local Democratic Party told supporters to vote for Silva even though he had passed away.
“I don’t have any political connections,” he said. “I’m not looking for individual endorsements because I don’t want to owe anybody anything.”
Smith Diaz started his law career as a federal public defender and currently has his own private practice in Chula Vista.
“I know how to litigate,” he said. “I’ve been a litigator my entire career and that means going to court, actually trying jury cases and winning them.”
Smith Diaz said he can also tackle other aspects of the law.
“Any good lawyer knows that they are going to face situations that they don’t know everything about,” he said. “Anybody that tells you they know everything is simply lying to you. I think I come in with a fresh set of eyes.”
Smith Diaz also touted his business experience. He started a pedicab business with four cabs that expanded into Denver, San Francisco and Houston.
Marco Verdugo
- Senior Associate with Burke, Williams & Sorensen law firm
- Former deputy city attorney for the city of San Diego
- Endorsed by Chula Vista Council members Alonso Gonzalez, Carolina Chavez and Andrea Cardenas
Verdugo was an intern in the Chula Vista City Attorney’s office when he began his legal career in 2011.
He then went on to work as a deputy city attorney in San Diego. He currently works in a private law firm that provides legal services to local municipalities and serves as deputy city attorney of both Coronado and Solana Beach.
“I know what issues big cities face and the issues that smaller cities face,” he said. “I’m prepared to handle anything Chula Vista is facing in the coming years.”
Verdugo said his decades of experience in municipal law make him an ideal candidate.
“We are advising the city in all aspects of city business,” he said. “From day-to-day operations, routine contracts, anything from a landscape maintenance agreement to a large development agreement.”
