Los Angeles County Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke, who was elected to represent some of the county's poorest neighborhoods, is living in a gated Brentwood home, despite laws requiring her to reside in the predominantly South Los Angeles district she serves.
In an interview with The Times two weeks ago, Burke said it was only on weekends and special occasions that she used her Brentwood home -- a 4,000-square-foot residence with a swimming pool and tennis court that she and her husband have long owned. She said she lived at a 1,200-square-foot townhouse in Mar Vista, on a busy street just inside the border of her district.
But over a three-week period in which she was observed by Times reporters, Burke spent every weekday evening at her Brentwood house, in the district of Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky. When confronted by reporters Wednesday, Burke changed her story and acknowledged that she has rarely slept in the Mar Vista townhouse, which she has declared as her primary residence since she purchased it more than a year ago.
Burke residence: A map in Friday's Section A that accompanied an article about the two residences of Los Angeles County Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke misspelled McLaughlin Avenue as McGlaughlin Avenue.
Asked whether voters would consider her primary residence as the place where she sleeps, Burke replied: "So I'll start sleeping here if that'll make you happy."
On Thursday -- before this report was published -- Burke issued a statement declaring that she has "always maintained my primary" residence within her district. And she accused Times reporters of accosting her during the sidewalk interview the day before.
In a telephone conversation with The Times later Thursday, Burke said she hoped to move into the Mar Vista townhouse as early as next week.
In order to hold their offices, the five supervisors, who preside over the nation's largest county government, are required by law to live in the districts they serve. If they don't, their office is deemed vacant.
In some cases, politicians living outside their districts have been criminally prosecuted for perjury and election fraud. Experts in government accountability say it is important that politicians live in the districts they represent so they better understand the concerns of their constituents.
Although questions about candidates' residency are fairly common in election campaigns, they are rare for county supervisors, whose districts are vast compared to those of most local elected officials.
