Don R Roth

Don Roth sifts through his wallet for the quote he has saved. "A man's not finished when he's defeated. He's finished when he quits." "Nixon wrote that to Ted Kennedy after the incident at Chappaquiddick," Roth, 72, says on a recent afternoon in the small Anaheim Hills house he shares with his fiancee, former model Dianne Bonnor, 37. "I'm going to carry it in my wallet forever."

Former Orange County Supervisor Don R. Roth has agreed not to lobby any local officials for three years after questions arose over whether he violated a lobbying ban imposed by his probation in meeting with transportation officials who once served under him, lawyers said Tuesday. The district attorney's office had threatened to bring new charges against Roth over the lobbying issue.

Scheduled appearances before the Orange County Grand Jury of three assistants to Supervisor Don R. Roth have been postponed until next week, officials said Thursday. The Roth aides had been ordered to testify before the grand jury today. They were subpoenaed last week by the district attorney's office as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into whether Roth, 71, exchanged political favors for unreported gifts from several local business people.

County Supervisor Don R. Roth is expected today to be elected chairman of a commission that is guiding the creation of a super-speed train linking Anaheim with Las Vegas. Roth currently is vice chairman of the California-Nevada Super Speed Train Commission, which has approved an international consortium's plans to privately build and operate a 265-m.p.h. magnetic levitation train. The rail service, which could begin in 1997, will link Anaheim with Las Vegas in a 75-minute, one-way trip.

Orange County Supervisors Harriett M. Wieder and Don R. Roth have made their reelection bids official. Both have obtained election papers from the registrar of voters, and must complete and return them by March 9. Supervisor Thomas F. Riley, who also faces reelection in June, had not taken out papers as of late Wednesday, a deputy registrar said. Roth, who represents the 4th District and chairs the board, is seeking his second term as a supervisor. He faces no opposition.

Orange County Supervisor Don R. Roth is expected to announce tonight that he will run for reelection next year in the 4th District. The 67-year-old Roth, who was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 1986, is expected to make the announcement at a $125-a-person cocktail party at Disneyland Hotel. Most political observers say they believe Roth will not be opposed in the June, 1990, election. Roth, a former Anaheim mayor, is one of three supervisors whose terms will expire next year.

Less than nine months after he agreed to a four-year ban on lobbying activities, convicted former Orange County Supervisor Don R. Roth has begun meeting with county transportation planners on behalf of a local engineer who wants money for a bus research project.

Less than nine months after he agreed to a four-year ban on lobbying activities, convicted former Orange County Supervisor Don R. Roth has begun meeting with county transportation planners on behalf of a local engineer who wants money for a bus research project.

Despite their earlier misgivings, prosecutors say they are now satisfied that former Orange County Supervisor Don R. Roth has worked 200 hours of physical labor to help satisfy a plea bargain struck last spring over allegations of influence-peddling. Roth's lawyer, Paul S. Meyer, has given the court sworn letters written last month by two local nonprofit groups detailing the time that the former board chairman spent stripping walls, painting, and cleaning up their facilities.

Supporters of former Orange County Supervisor Don R. Roth will pay $100 apiece to attend a fund-raising event next month that is expected to help Roth pay a remaining $25,000 of his $50,000 fine for seven convictions on ethics law violations. Notices of the reception--which show a younger Roth attired in his Navy uniform and saluting other uniformed personnel--have been circulated throughout the county.

Former Orange County Supervisor Don R. Roth, convicted last month of political ethics law violations, met Monday's deadline to pay half the $50,000 fine levied against him, officials said. Roth attorney Paul S. Meyer said "the majority" of the payment--and perhaps the entire amount--came from Roth's leftover campaign funds. But Meyer said he was not certain of the exact amount that came out of Roth's campaign account.

The prosecutor who led the effort to convict former Supervisor Don R. Roth said Wednesday that he is confident that Roth will abide by the terms of his March 25 plea agreement, despite new questions that have arisen over that issue. Deputy Dist. Atty. Guy Ormes said he spoke with Roth defense attorney Paul S. Meyer this week and is satisfied that Roth will carry out the sentence as agreed in a plea bargain. "I don't have any regrets" about the plea agreement, Ormes said.

Two of the three companies bidding to build the high-speed train system that would link Anaheim and Las Vegas may pull out of the running, county Supervisor Don R. Roth said Tuesday. Roth made the statement during the monthly meeting of the Newport Foundation for the Study of Major Economic Issues, where he was a guest breakfast speaker. The supervisor serves as the the vice chairman of the California-Nevada Super Speed Ground Transportation Commission.

An aide to Supervisor Don R. Roth said Friday that doctors have discovered a tumor on the supervisor's left lung, but--after an initial "scare"--see no immediate risk. "They do not believe that there is a problem," said aide Dan Wooldridge, speaking on behalf of Roth, 70. "He's just waiting and watching." No surgical procedures have been performed to determine whether the growth is malignant or benign, Wooldridge said.

When former Supervisor Don R. Roth pleaded guilty last month to political ethics-law violations, lawyers stressed that he would satisfy his 200 hours of court-ordered community service by lugging boxes and helping the Boys & Girls Club of Anaheim move into a new home. Well, not quite. Boys & Girls Club Executive Director Michael J. Sofia said Monday that Roth is spending all of his time there helping to organize a golf tournament as a fund-raiser for the club and finding corporate sponsors.

Even while then-County Supervisor Don R. Roth was under investigation for alleged influence peddling, he continued accepting gifts at a pace exceeding any of his colleagues on the Board of Supervisors, according to financial statements filed Friday. In all, Roth's gifts were valued at $3,318 and included trips, sports tickets and meals from many individuals who had business relationships with the county, according to the statements for 1992.