Updated 4:58 p.m.
An independent investigation found Sacramento City Council member Sean Loloee lives in the district he represents and meets legal residency requirements, the city announced Wednesday.
The city released a redacted version of a report by a local attorney, who found Loloee’s primary residence is in District 2 located in North Sacramento.
Attorney Melinda Guzman began the investigation on July 18, about three weeks after Mayor Darrell Steinberg and District 2 residents called for an investigation into Loloee’s residency.
This request followed a June report from the The Sacramento Bee in which neighbors accused Loloee of living in a million-dollar home in Granite Bay, instead of his home in District 2. Loloee was elected in 2020 to represent the district, which includes northeast Sacramento neighborhoods like Old North Sacramento, Hagginwood, Woodlake and Del Paso Heights.
A group calling itself the District 2 Coalition of Neighborhood Leaders also requested an independent investigation into Loloee’s residency claims in June. More than a dozen people signed the request, including the district’s active transportation commissioner, executive director of the Del Paso Boulevard Partnership and leaders from multiple community neighborhood associations.
Daniel Savala, director of the Del Paso Boulevard Partnership, said the finished investigation settles questions around Loloee’s residency for himself, personally. The coalition never met with the intent to start a recall or choose a side, Savala added.
“We wanted this to be transparent, quick and open and to get the business of the district back on track,” Savala said. “And it seems as though we finally got that. We can all move on now.”
City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood said Guzman used the same legal standards in her review as California’s attorney general.
“I am satisfied that this inquiry was thorough and conducted in a professional manner,” Alcala Wood said in a press release. “We asked Melinda Guzman to examine the facts of the case in an impartial manner, to let the investigation go wherever the facts led it, and to provide a conclusion as to whether Councilmember Loloee has met and continues to meet the residency requirement of Section 27 of the City of Sacramento Charter and applicable law.”
Mina Perez, another District 2 resident who signed the coalition letter, said Guzman is a respected attorney. Perez said each individual community member can try talking with Loloee and air out their concerns. From there, Perez said, fellow residents can decide if they can work with Loloee or not.
“I think each individual needs to make that decision,” Perez said. “I can only handle what I am able to do in my corner, and I definitely want to make sure that we move forward to assist the community in the right direction. We cannot keep throwing our personal feelings when it comes to something like this.
In the investigation, Guzman found Loloee’s house in District 2 has been his primary residence since March 2019. Guzman further reported that Loloee allowed the family of one of his employees to live at the house with him.
Since he purchased the home in 2019, Sacramento Police have visited Loloee’s North Sacramento home multiple times for reports of loud music, fireworks and arguments over stolen vehicles, among other things, according to data obtained by CapRadio in August.
In an interview, Loloee said he lived at the home in North Sacramento when these incidents took place. He also told CapRadio that most of these incidents did not actually happen.
Loloee’s own family had not lived in the North Sacramento home since late 2019, according to the report.
Loloee responded to the results of the residency investigation in an email sent to District 2 constituents on Wednesday.
“This review brings to a close a considerably difficult period for me, my family, and my friends,” he said. “We have many challenges to resolve and many opportunities here in District 2 … It is time to return to the business of our district and the City of Sacramento.”
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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