Jury selection in bribery case involving former Palm Springs mayor and developer starts May 6
Update - 5/1/25
After numerous years of delays, the bribery case involving former Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet and developer John Wessman will go to trial.
Jury selection is set to get underway on May 6 at the Banning Justice Center.
News Channel 3's Garrett Hottle spoke with Pougnet. We'll have the latest on the case live at Noon.
Original - 4/29/25
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) - Former Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet and local developer John Wessman are set to return to court Thursday in a bribery case that dates back nearly a decade.
Pougnet and Wessman are scheduled to learn whether their trial will begin. The Riverside County District Attorney's Office confirmed to News Channel 3 that after many delays, they are ready to go to trial on Thursday.
Wessman and developer Richard Meaney were accused of paying Pougnet at least $375,000 to buy votes and influence projects in Palm Springs between 2012 and 2014. Projects include the Kimpton hotel and the surrounding downtown re-development project.
The case drew national attention after the FBI raided Palm Springs City Hall in 2015.
Charges were officially filed in 2017. The trio were indicted on Aug. 2019 after the case was presented to a grand jury by the Riverside County District Attorney's Office.
The case went through several years of delays.
Check Out Our 'Scandal at City Hall' Section for More Coverage on this Case
10 of 11 charges were eventually dropped against Meaney in 2023. He pled guilty to a misdemeanor charge of Conflict of Interest and is set to be sentenced on June 9, according to court records.
Wessman is charged with numerous counts of bribery.
Pougnet was charged with 9 counts of Bribery and 8 counts of Contract w/Financial Intent, three counts of Perjury and one count of Conspiracy to Commit Crime. If convicted as charged, Pougnet could face more than 19 years in prison and would be barred from ever holding public office again. Meaney could face 12 years behind bars.
Pougnet and Meaney pleaded not guilty to all charges in Sept. 2019.
