Congressman Ruiz returns donations from Pougnet & Meaney, donates to Planned Parenthood

Congressman Doctor Raul Ruiz’s campaign consultant said the congressman has donated $2,600 to Planned Parenthood with money that was donated to him by former Palm Springs mayor Steve Pougnet and developer Richard Meaney.

Charges were filed against Pougnet and Meaney by the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office on Thursday, after more than a year’s worth of investigations took place over a public corruption case in Palm Springs.

KESQ News Channel 3 and CBS Local 2 have had in-depth coverage of the Scandal at City Hall since the FBI first raided Palm Springs City Hall on September 1, 2015.

Congressman Ruiz’s Campaign Consultant Roy Behr said that Planned Parenthood provides critical health services to thousands of local women, which Congressional Republicans are trying to defund. Behr also said in a statement from Congressman Ruiz, “If Congressional Republicans really care about ethics, shouldn’t they investigate Russian interference in American elections?”

We learned on Friday that the third defendant listed in the DA’s complaint, local developer John Wessman, surrendered on Thursday after the charges were filed, and he bailed out of jail the same day.