LA councilman faces call to resign after $138K fine for swank Vegas trip

What happens in Vegas doesn’t stay in Vegas — at least for politicians from the City of Angels.Los Angeles Councilman John Lee got slapped Wednesday with a nearly $140,000 fine by the city’s Ethics Commission for improper meals and a 2017 trip to Las Vegas in which he allegedly dined on exotic dishes, guzzled booze and accepted gambling chips on the dime of shady businessmen in violation of city rules, according to a report by the Los Angeles Times.The Ethics Commission’s unanimous 4-0 vote found that Lee — who at the time of the trip was a City Hall staffer — broke city gift laws and failed to properly disclose the freebies, which included a fancy meal at Aria Resort & Casino’s Blossom restaurant and bottle service at Hakkasan nightclub.Assemblymember Pilar Schiavo, a Democrat who represents parts of Southern California that include Lee’s district in northwest San Fernando Valley, called on him to resign Thursday.She cited the Ethics Commission’s decision as just the latest scandal to rock the City Council, from members saying racist comments about a colleague’s son to a councilman and his wife allegedly embezzling $800,000 meant for housing and public transit.

“Such abuse of public office erodes trust and harms not just one individual, but the integrity of the institution itself,” Schiavo said in a statement to The Post.“Based on my experience as both a colleague and a constituent, John Lee has failed to demonstrate that he serves the people of our community first, instead showing a pattern of transactional and self-serving behavior that undermines confidence in his judgment.”Lee argued during a multi-day hearing in June that he barely ate during the meals and attempted to pay his fair share, according to the Times.Ji-Lan Zang, an administrative law judge who oversaw the hearing, reportedly doubted some of Lee’s claims and recommended a fine of roughly $44,000 after concluding that he had violated five of the 10 counts against ...