PNC board member Kyle McAuley charged with assault at Board of Neighborhood Councils meeting

Update: PNC President required medical treatment, statement from McAuley and journalists

William Gude, the journalist who confronted City Attorney Hydee Feldstein-Soto at Palms Community Day, attended the Neighborhood Council Commission meeting to, in his own words, discuss the conduct of Palms Neighborhood Council Board member Kyle McAuley at Saturday's Palms Community Day event. You can view his public comment here:

Gude stated in his comment that Kyle McCauley “got up close and personal with him and used some pretty disturbing language.” He went on to tell the commission he would tell them now: “He called me sh*t, he called me an idiot and he told me to get out. So he violated my First Amendment rights because it was a public space and he was acting in his official role because he was wearing a Palms Neighborhood Council t-shirt at the event. He started chest bumping me, which is an assault. That's a Neighborhood Council member attacking a constituent.”

“[He] “He spit in my face a couple of times and finally knocked over the lady behind me, a lovely lady. This behavior is unacceptable. Here is an elected member of city government committing an assault and violating my First Amendment rights to free speech and assembly. And on top of that, after he knocked the lady over, he blamed it on me and said I committed an assault. So here is an elected official lying to a citizen at a City of LA event and I think it sets a terrible precedent if nothing is done about it. This behavior is unacceptable and if we allow him to commit multiple assaults and tell members of the public that they are not allowed to speak, that they are not allowed to be present at a public event, what is going to happen next?”

In addition, Gude stated that he would file a report with the West Los Angeles Police Department and that he expected the committee to act quickly on the matter because he believes McCauley has no place on a city council committee.

Next to speak was Kay Hartman, president of the Palms Neighborhood Council, who thanked local authorities for their quick response to her report of the incident. Gude noted that Hartman was hospitalized and suffered bruises from the fall. Hartman told Gude that the video helped her greatly in moving the case forward, which is believed to be a case against McCauley.

In an email exchange, Kyle McAuley initially said he had a statement and then referred us to a post on his Instagram page as his statement on the incident.

It says: “I want to talk about what happened yesterday. As you all know, I am a member of my neighborhood council. We have spent the last few months putting time and energy into an event called Community Day and it is taxpayer funded. We all walked around the neighborhood putting up flyers, making phone calls, organizing events and games. I DJ'd from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. We just wanted a fun event, but not everyone was on the same page. One of the speakers, Hydee Feldstein Soto, the city attorney, showed up with a handful of protesters yelling at her with their phones drawn.”

“At one point the entire neighborhood council was packed into one place and these protesters were at our throats. They weren't attacking us and I understand that they have the right to protest because I will always defend freedom of speech. Always. But I believe that gives me the right to legally express my freedom of speech as well. I also admit that I violated the neighborhood council code of conduct. I did. I am willing to accept the consequences of my actions.”

“But I am a fighter, not a promoter of violence. I want to make that very clear, and that is how I gain support to make change. I may not see it now, but I will see the support. Unless we are bold and meet these people with the same charged rhetoric and energy that they bring, they will not be deterred. I have promised to keep my mouth shut at the next committee meeting, and I will keep that. But I will always be tough and not call out nonsense, because that is who I am, and the raw fight for change is in me.”

McCauley posted this Instagram story after discovering the video of Gude attending the Board of Neighborhood Council commission meeting.

Journalist Jonathan Green, who was also insulted by Kyle McAuley at Palms Community Day, emailed us a statement about the incident: “I've been covering homeless evictions in West LA, and lately my work has revolved around the city's ongoing attempts to completely clear tents and RVs on Cotner Avenue between Olympic and Santa Monica Blvd. I came to the Palms Community Day event because I knew the city attorney would be there, and I wanted to ask her if it was legal to crush RVs on site, which I'm told the city plans to do later this week.”

“When I attempted to question the city attorney on this issue, Palms Neighborhood Council member Kyle McAuley butted into the conversation by expressing his agitation at the prospect of homeless people's vehicles being forfeited by the city. When I told him I was a resident of the Palms neighborhood, he told me to live somewhere else, and at one point he told me he was on the neighborhood council to stop people like me. Another council member attempted to defuse the situation by speaking with me, but Kyle insisted on continuing to engage with me in a very hostile and combative manner without truly listening to my concerns, instead treating the situation like a heated argument rather than an interaction between a government official and a constituent.”

“When Kyle became frustrated with not being able to talk to me, he started yelling “IDIOT!!!” at me over and over like a child throwing a tantrum. Eventually the other council member pulled me aside to have a private conversation, but Kyle came back and got right in my face calling me a wimp. He then ran up to William Gude and had a mental breakdown where he got in his face and started yelling at him to leave while trying to physically push Gude back, knocking the council president over.”

“After this incident, Kyle spent the rest of the event DJing. To say the least, I am deeply displeased with Kyle McAuley and am doing everything I can to remove him from the Neighborhood Council. I believe Kyle is a danger to the community and he shows contempt for his own constituents. I have lived in West LA most of my life and know that the community does not stand up for his values ​​and I know that the community would be willing to speak out if that is what it takes to remove him. Right now, I see signs that the Neighborhood Council is working on the process to remove him and I wait to see how that process progresses in the coming weeks.”

“I trust that the Palms Neighborhood Council will do the right thing. However, if I don't see action in the right direction, I am prepared to survey the neighborhood and gain support for his removal from the council. Finally, I want to make it clear that I have no issues with the other members of the neighborhood council at this time and my only complaint is with Kyle McAuley. The rest of the Palms Neighborhood Council acted professionally and did nothing that could cause further problems. If the council takes its time in removing Kyle, I will have problems, but right now I have no problems.”