The Region - News from Aug. 29, 1986

A federal judge found the City of Los Angeles in contempt of a July 22 order directing that fired Los Angeles Zoo Director Warren Thomas be given a “full and fair hearing” within 30 days on his claims that he was unfairly dismissed from his job. U.S. District Judge William J. Rea fined the city $100 a day retroactively to Aug. 21 until the Recreation and Parks Department begins the scheduled Sept. 2 hearing, and ordered further fines of $100 daily for any delays from that date until Sept. 23, when the penalty for delays will be increased to $1,000 daily. Rea also ruled that the city must hire an outside lawyer to advise the three-member tribunal hearing the case, barring the city attorney’s office from acting as legal adviser on grounds of conflict of interest. The judge issued his order at the request of Thomas’ lawyers, Nathan Goldberg and Gloria Allred.