Likely mayor has a controversial past

Livingston’s next mayor quite likely will be Jim Soria, a longtime resident and former police officer who faced controversy in 2006 after lying to sheriff’s deputies.

Soria, 47, was the only candidate to file to run for mayor of the city of about 13,500, so he’ll be unopposed on the November ballot, the Merced County Registrar of Voters Office confirmed Wednesday.

A councilman since 2012, Soria was a Dos Palos police officer when he lied to sheriff’s deputies in 2006 during a criminal investigation, according to public records.

Soria admitted that he lied three times to investigators aand eventually left the Dos Palos Police Department. He was convicted of a misdemeanor. The conviction was later expunged from his record.

He told the Sun-Star on Wednesday that he’s taken “a lot of arrows” over what he did a decade ago. “Over 10 years you have difficult experiences and it makes you stronger,” he said. “I made a mistake, and you move on from it.”

Soria, who graduated from Livingston High School in 1986, has claimed the charges against him were a retaliation by the Dos Palos Police Department because he’d blown the whistle on wrongdoing, such as mismanaging evidence and failing to complete felony police reports.

Just before midnight on March 1, 2006, a 54-year-old man wanted on a misdemeanor warrant turned himself in to the Dos Palos Police Department. The man was intoxicated and turned himself in to then-Officer Soria and another officer, according to a Merced County Sheriff’s Office report.

Soria and the other officer refused to make the arrest. Instead, the report says, the officers drove the drunken man to an empty parking lot several miles outside of town. The officers then used the man’s cellphone to contact the Sheriff’s Office. The report says Soria’s partner attempted to “disguise” his voice and told sheriff’s dispatchers to pick up the man in the parking lot. The officers then drove away from the area, leaving the man alone with a bottle of whiskey, the report says.

When questioned about the incident by sheriff’s detectives, Soria initially denied involvement in refusing to make the arrest. He changed his story later and admitted his role after detectives told Soria they had proof of his involvement, the report says.

“I asked Officer Soria why he had this elaborate lie and just had not told me the truth from the beginning. Officer Soria told me that he and (the other officer) did not want to get in trouble,” the report says.

Soria said he believes the people of Livingston support him, adding he’s lived in town since he was in the fifth grade. Now a security supervisor at Memorial Hospital Los Banos, he said he volunteers as a youth football coach in Livingston.

“There’s still a lot of friends and family in Livingston,” he said. “I think they know the real me and I think that’s probably why I have their support.”

Soria is the only candidate to file for the mayoral seat being vacated by Rodrigo Espinoza, who in June won election to become supervisor for Merced County District 1.

Soria’s colleagues on the Livingston City Council spoke in support of his mayoral run. Councilman Gurpal Samra, who has served the last four years with Soria, described Livingston’s likely mayor as “a great guy” who is dedicated to the community.

Samra addressed Soria’s controversial past.

“The way I know him now, I think he’s been a good person,” he said. “If what (happened) in the past was true, then I think everybody deserves a second chance. And, I don’t have a problem with that.”

Councilman Alex McCabe, who was appointed to a vacant seat more than a year ago, also backed Soria. He described Soria as a “fair and honest guy” and said he’s confident Soria will be a “strong” mayor despite his past.

“It gives me pause, but I don’t think it’s constructive for us to dwell on that,” McCabe said.

Soria said he hopes to use his time in office to maintain public safety in town and improve Livingston’s economic outlook.

“I’m looking forward to serving the city of Livingston,” he said, “and trying to provide the highest-quality level of service that I can.”

This story was originally published September 7, 2016 at 6:42 PM with the headline "Likely mayor has a controversial past."